Family By Choice
by socalrose
Summary: Jack saved her once when she was little. Can Jack and his Torchwood team save her again? The time frame is after TW Series 2, Ep 1 Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang. Slight DW crossover.
1. A Child No Longer

FYI

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

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**THE CAFE **

Jack for once wasn't waiting and watching for a Weevil while sitting at the Casa Celi café. He and Ianto were having a late lunch just the two of them alone. Talking about past events and laughing even at some of the not so pleasant ones. Jack was able to find humor in almost everything now and he enjoyed making Ianto smile and laugh. Ianto was gorgeous when he laughed.

Life was better for Jack since he returned to the team. The time he spent with the Doctor and Martha (Jack thought of it as the year that wasn't) had provided answers and insights. The Doctor explained why Jack can't die and why he had abandoned Jack on Satellite 5. It wasn't what he expected, but he could cope with the answer.

Even the time spent as the Master's captive wasn't wasted as far as Jack was concerned. He had plenty of time (in the intervals between him getting killed over and over again) to think about everything – his past as a time agent, a con man, a rogue. Jack had learned so much from the Doctor, Martha and Rose. Things that aren't taught in most books: Compassion, patience, responsibility, perseverance, love, and sacrifice. One person, even one with a very tarnished past, can make a huge difference and, as part of a team, can in fact save the world.

After The Doctor, Martha and he had saved the world from the Master, the Doctor had invited Jack to travel with him again. Tempting, but Jack knew what he needed most was to return to his team; to Torchwood. They needed him and more importantly, he needed them and missed them.

So, he said his goodbyes to the Doctor and Martha and went home. Home; Jack hadn't had a home to go to for so long and it felt right. No, it felt terrific! OK, the team had been pretty pissed that Jack had left without a word. But they eventually took him back into the fold. Still, Jack knew he had to rebuild bridges of trust with each member of the team.

Today Jack was rebuilding his bridge to Ianto. Judging by Ianto's laughter, the rebuilding was going very nicely indeed.

Lunch finished, Ianto was enjoying a coffee and Jack was drinking his usual glass of water. Out of habit, Jack was watching the crowd (you never know when a Weevil might appear) when he noticed a woman watching him. Not staring, just watching.

She was standing near a shop down the street alternating between looking at the window display and looking at Jack and Ianto. She appeared to be in her early 50s, 5 foot 4 inches tall, around 135 pounds and held a walking cane in her right hand. Her hair was salt and pepper cut in a short boyish style and her clothes were casual. Black slacks, teal pull over cotton top, Reebok trainers and a sweat jacket. Jack knew her from somewhere, but where? She was too far away to see the intricate details of her face. He knew she wasn't a threat, but he couldn't have said why he knew that as a fact.

Ianto had noticed her too. "She seems to be looking at you Jack. Do you know her?" Jack turned back to face Ianto. "I'm not sure, but there's something familiar about her." When Jack looked back she was gone. "Should we pursue her?" Ianto asked.

"No, but if I see her again, I'll talk to her. Anyway, we should head back to the Hub," replied Jack. He was certain that they would see her again and soon.

The daily meeting in the Hub boardroom was a bit boring. No new Weevil sightings, no unusual crimes or events and the rift activity was minimal. "Great," said Jack "gives us a chance to catch up on paperwork." The moaning from the team wasn't as bad as Jack expected. Owen, Tosh, Gwen, and Ianto went off to their respective desks to start plowing through unfinished reports.

Jack was reading through the reports the team had already completed and was updating his captain's log, when a signal came through to his computer display built into his desk. The brief text message was from Ianto. He was at the front desk of the tourist information office (a front for the main entrance to the Hub). The message simply said, "She's approaching the office. Look at the monitor."

Turning around to face the bank of monitors in his office, Jack activated the front office monitor using the remote control built into his time agent wrist band. The monitor blinked on and Jack could see the front office from Ianto's point of view. She was just entering the office and smiled at Ianto.

"May I help you madam?" asked Ianto.

"Hi. I liked to speak to Captain Jack Harkness," she replied (she spoke with an American accent.

"I'm sorry, but no Captain Jack Harkness works here. This is just a local tourist office," Ianto said while giving her his best smile.

Her smile didn't waver at this response. Leaning on the front desk, she looked at Ianto with gray eyes with splashes of green ringed with blue. "Look," she said without anger, "I saw you having lunch with Capt. Jack Harkness at the cafe this afternoon and you both entered this office. It's important that I speak with him. Tell him it's Annie." Then, she looked directly at the camera as if she could see Jack through its lens. "Uncle Jack, it's me, Annie Halliday. I know I'm not the little girl you remember, but look at my eyes. You know who I am."

Jack was already heading towards the front office.

******************************************************

**THE TOURIST OFFICE**

Annie and Ianto both turned to look at Jack as he walked through the hidden doorway. She didn't seem surprised by the hidden entrance. Her smile broadened and her eyes sparkled when she saw Jack.

Jack walked over to her and stood there gazing at her face. He towered over her. Annie started to reach out to Jack, hesitated, and put her hand down by her side. She just stood there quietly looking up at him and waiting. The last time Jack had seen those eyes, she was just 17 years old.

"Annie," Jack whispered. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her gently.

"I guess I shouldn't call you Uncle Jack anymore," she said, her voice muffled against his chest. "People will think I'm weird, but that's nothing new is it?" Jack chuckled and replied, "You're not weird," and then in unison they said, "You're just a special, delicate flower," and they both laughed.

"Jack, we need to talk," Annie said in a serious voice. Ianto, who had watched this scene between Jack and Annie, asked Jack if he wanted his coat.

"No," Jack replied, "I'll just take Annie up to my office." Jack took Annie by the hand and together they walked into the Torchwood Hub, leaving a very surprised Ianto at the front desk.

As Jack walked slowly through the Hub, matching his pace to Annie's, he saw the puzzled looks on the faces of Gwen, Tosh and Owen. "This is Annie. We're old friends. I'm taking her up to my office for a chat," he said, raising his eyebrows at them sending a silent message that he wouldn't answer any questions right now.

Annie was looking at the vastness of the Hub when she heard the screech of the pterodactyl. Most people would have been terrified, but she just smiled and asked Jack if it was the group's mascot. "Not really. He's just a stray that showed up on our doorstep and kind of adopted us," he replied with a grin.

After Jack and Annie were settled in his office, Ianto came into the Hub and walked towards the others. "Who the hell is that?" asked Owen, without looking at Ianto. "The last person Jack introduced us to damn near killed us all." He was referring to Capt. John Hart, a time agent who used to be Jack's partner. Hart turned out to be a nasty fellow who shot Owen, poisoned Gwen, beat up Tosh, and threw Jack off the roof of a building, all in one night. Fortunately, the team outsmarted him and sent him packing via the rift.

Ianto stepped up to one of the computers and started punching keys. "She's American and her name is Annie Halliday. Jack knows her and was apparently very close to her when she was a child."

"How do you know that?" asked Tosh perplexed. Ianto looked at her and said, "She called him 'Uncle Jack'." Returning his attention to the computer screen, Ianto rattled off additional information.

"Annie Halliday, exact date of birth unknown, but presumed to be 1956. Her parents, or least they assume it was her parents, died in a car accident in Nevada 1956. She was also in the accident, but was rescued from the burning car before it exploded," Ianto continued as he scrolled through the official reports displayed on the screen. "Her rescuer was identified as one Capt. Jack Harkness, a RAF pilot on loan to the US Air Force."

The team looked up at Jack and Annie talking quietly with their heads close together. Jack was holding Annie's hand and gently rubbing his thumb over the top of her hand in a comforting gesture. "I guess the uncle title is honorary," Gwen said to no one in particular.

"What other information do we have on her?" Gwen asked.

Ianto was accessing another database and said, "Jack asked for and was granted temporary guardianship over Annie and personally screened potential couples who wanted to adopt her."

He continued in a quiet voice, "It seems Annie was terribly injured in the crash and it was a miracle she survived. The doctors said it would take years and multiple surgeries before Annie would be able to walk. Jack wanted to make sure that anyone who adopted her would be willing to take on the tremendous task and raise her in a loving, caring environment." He finally chose Ed and Mary Halliday. Ed was a doctor and Mary was a teacher. Mary quit her job to take care of Annie full time."

Owen looked at the medical reports of her injuries, several medical tests and surgeries for a few minutes while the rest of the team waited. Finally he said, "The cost alone of all the necessary surgeries would have strapped them financially."

"It appears Jack helped out financially, setting up a trust fund that paid for all the surgeries and for her education," murmured Ianto. "Ed and Mary Halliday let Jack visit Annie anytime he wanted and he was around often enough that Annie started calling him 'Uncle Jack'."

They all looked at each other. Gwen and Tosh had tears in their eyes. Ianto looked at Owen and then back up at Jack and Annie. Jack must have said something funny because Annie was laughing. Owen started to say, "Just when you think you've figured Jack out. . ." and then he just stopped in mid sentence. "Never boring with Jack around," Ianto agreed.

The silence of the moment became awkward for all of them. "Well, I think I'll make some fresh coffee," commented Ianto as he closed the various reports and files he still had displayed on the screen. The others murmured something about having tasks they still needed to complete and they slowly moved back to their desks.

*************************************************************

**HOW I MET YOUR DOCTOR**

"What do you think?" asked Jack as he gazed at his team through his office window.

"Oh, I'm sure they've already pulled up all the background information on me by now," Annie replied, as another smile played across her face. "Looks like you've put together a great team Jack."

"Yes I have," Jack responded. Making direct eye contact with Annie Jack said, "But you're not here just to talk to your old Uncle Jack about your childhood or my team, Annie. Why are you really here?"

Annie sifted around in her chair, leaned back and looked at Jack thoughtfully. Jack knew that look all too well. Annie had something important on her mind and she was trying to figure out the best way to say it. He waited and gave her as much time as she needed.

Finally, she said, "There are a few things I need to tell you Jack. First, I met your Doctor."

Jack was surprised; he was not expecting that statement from her. He had told Annie all about himself and the Doctor when she was little and hadn't tried to disguise the details as fairy tales. For some reason not quite clear to him, he knew that Annie would understand the truth and would not share it with anyone else. "Are you sure it was _my_ Doctor?" he asked.

"Well, he didn't have his hair short or wear a black jacket like you had mentioned to me. His hair was long and kind of mussed up and he wore a pinstripe suite, long overcoat and athletic shoes. I think they call them trainers over here. He did have the blue sonic screwdriver and the old-fashioned British Police Box you told me was his TARDIS. Your description of his personality and quirks was dead on. The Doctor was arrogant, funny, quick-witted, talked a mile a minute, happy, sad, angry, and his mind went in several different directions at any given moment. He had this red-headed woman with him. Her name was Donna. Anyway, she was British and not afraid to speak her mind. I kind of liked her."

"Hmm, must be a new companion. I wonder if Martha went back home to London?" mused Jack. "But that's definitely my Doctor," he grinned. "Where did you meet him?"

"I met him in Hollywood, California. Seems some aliens had taken up residence in some of the unfinished portions of the subway system out there," Annie said this casually, as if it were an everyday occurrence not even worthy as a small news article in the back section of the Los Angles Times.

"What were the aliens after?" asked Jack.

"I'm not sure, but whatever they wanted involved activating the San Andreas Fault," she replied. "So there I was riding the subway when the Doctor swings down from the roof and into the car I was riding in. He put on his glasses and told everyone, 'Hello,' and promptly activated the emergency brakes. Then he told us all to run for our lives and I just stood there looking at him. I asked him if it looked like I could run and who the hell was he?" Annie said.

Jack couldn't help but grin. He could picture Annie standing there leaning on her cane giving the Doctor what for. He shook his head and asked Annie to continue.

"Well, he says to me, 'Look, I'm the Doctor and I need you to get out of here,' I told him I knew about the Doctor, but that didn't change the fact that I couldn't run. He looked at me as if I was a Slitheen and asked me who I was and how did I know his name?

All of a sudden it was more important to him to find out how I knew about him rather than me running for my life. So I told him my name and that I knew about him because of you. You should have seen the look on his face when I told him about you and me.

Anyway, at that point this red-head comes in the back door yelling, 'They're coming this way!' and stops dead in her tracks. Looks at me and then looks at the Doctor and says, 'Oi, Space boy, who's this then?'

The Doctor says, 'Donna, this is Annie Halliday, Annie, Donna Noble. Annie's a friend of a friend.' Donna shakes my hand and spots my cane. 'Let me guess, he told you to run for your life, right?' I nodded and Donna smacks the Doctor's arm. 'I can't believe you said that to someone holding a cane. What did you think it was for, a decoration?'

'Ow, stop hitting me,' the Doctor complained. 'Sorry, I was a bit preoccupied alright?'

'That's better,' Donna said 'Annie, why don't you and I hide behind the bench over there alright?'

'Sounds like a plan to me,' the Doctor agreed. 'Annie, let's hope you live to tell your Uncle Jack all about this.'

So Donna and I hid behind the bench while the Doctor stood in the aisle staring at the back door and we waited. I heard this shuffling outside the back door and then this squeaky kind of voice told the Doctor to surrender. 'No, sorry, but I couldn't possibly surrender today. How about next Thursday at, say, ten-ish?' The Doctor had his sonic screw driver out by this point and gave me a wink and a smile and said 'Jack would love this!'" Annie paused to catch her breath.

Jack again held Annie's hand and asked, "Are you OK?" Annie nodded her head. "So, tell me what happened," he asked encouraging her to continue.

Annie smiled weakly at Jack and said, "I'm not quite sure Jack. The lights dimmed and the back door blew in and there was noise and smoke and Donna and I screamed. The Doctor was in front of us and the next thing I knew, he was down on the floor." Annie was looking through Jack, not seeing him, but seeing the scene replay in her mind.

"I don't know what they were, Jack. Couldn't really see them clearly, but they were coming for us. Donna was kneeling on the floor shaking the Doctor trying to wake him up. The Doctor started to sit up, but the creatures were getting too close. The next thing I knew I was standing in front of the Doctor. I must have dropped my cane somewhere, because it wasn't in my hand anymore. I raised my hands palms out toward the creatures, and I remembering yelling 'No,' and then there was this blast of energy from somewhere nearby and I was knocked to the floor."

Annie's eyes refocused on Jack. "Jack," she whispered, "when I opened my eyes, the creatures were gone and the Doctor was bending over me calling my name."

Jack handed her a glass of water. "Here. Drink this." Annie took a sip or two of water and put it shakily down on the table, spilling some of the water. "Sorry. I'm a bit clumsy at the moment," she said apologetically.

"Don't worry about that," Jack said as he wiped up the spill with his handkerchief. "What happened after you woke up?" He asked.

"The Doctor was saying my name and when I looked at his face, I saw he was really concerned and maybe a little scared too. He said, 'Annie, it's OK. It's all over. I've got you.' He got me up on my feet and we left the train. 'Best not to be around when the police arrive,' he told me, 'way too much paperwork.'

The Doctor and Donna took me back to the TARDIS and the Doctor gave me a quick once over. He asked a lot of questions, about me, the car accident, your involvement, my adoptive parents, how many surgeries I had, and whether I had any major illnesses after I recovered from the accident. Anyway, after I answered all of his questions, he didn't answer mine. Wouldn't tell me who the creatures were or what they wanted. All he said was that I had helped prevent a major catastrophe. Then he smiles and says, 'Who wants Mexican food? I have a craving for Mexican food. Let's go, shall we?'

After we had dinner we returned to the TARDIS and the Doctor chatted with me while he wrote a letter. When he was done, he put the letter in an envelope, sealed it and handed the envelope to me. He held both my hands, and told me, 'Annie, you're a fantastic person; very special, indeed.

Look, I want you to do something for me. I need you to take this letter to Captain Jack. He's working at the Torchwood Institute in Cardiff, Wales. It's for his eyes only.' I told him he was scaring me. The Doctor smiled and told me, 'There's no need to be frightened Annie. Everything will be fine. I just need you to travel to Cardiff and tell Jack everything you've seen and done today and then give him this letter. Jack will know what to do.' As I started to leave the Tardis Donna gave me a big hug and whispered in my ear, 'I don't know who this Jack is luv, but if the Doctor trusts him to help you then you're going to be OK. Just give Jack the letter like the Doctor told you.' So, here I am Jack. And here's the letter."

Annie pulled the letter out of her tote bag and placed it on the table in front of Jack. She rose from the table and went to the window that overlooks the entire main floor of the Hub. She stood with her back to Jack to give him time to read the letter without her watching him.

Jack opened the envelope, hesitated a moment, then pulled out the letter.

"Dear Jack,

Leave it to you to find someone as special as Annie. She saved my life today plus most of the western United States. By now she's told you all she remembers about the incident.

Here's the part she doesn't remember. When I regained consciousness, Annie was standing between me and my little friends. What species they were is irrelevant at this point. Her cane had dropped to the floor and she was holding her hands in front of her, palms pointing out toward the back door. She screamed, "No!" and then an energy pulse shot out from her palms, blowing the little fellers out of the car and about 40 yards down the track. Annie didn't kill any of them. Oh, hurt some of them yes, but they all ran away under their own power and then left the planet.

After she discharged the energy pulse she collapsed to the floor and was out for about five minutes. We got her back to the TARDIS and I ran some quick scans. She's OK and based on her answers to my questions, she is completely unaware of what she did or is capable of doing. I understand that she has no recollection of her biological parents and the bodies were burnt beyond recognition. Based on what I've seen and the data I picked up from my scans, Annie is half human and half some other species. Which species I'm not completely certain (yeah, surprised me too), but I am certain that she is not a threat to anyone unless she feels she or others around her are in danger.

I could have taken Annie with me to several hospitals in the future where they would probably be able to quickly tell us what her non-human half is, but she's too delicate, medically speaking and I don't want to take the chance of hurting her by taking her anywhere in the TARDIS.

Annie told me when you pulled her out of that burning car years ago she knew instantly she was safe and felt connected to you. Somehow Annie and you bonded in an extraordinary way Jack. I suspect if you look back on the event now, you'll realize you've always trusted her and felt connected to her as well. Otherwise, you'd have never told her about yourself or me.

It's up to you and your Torchwood team to solve this mystery and to help Annie understand who she is and what's going on with her body and how she can control it.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being Volcano Day I'd say Annie's condition is about a 6. Good luck Jack.

Best regards,

The Doctor"

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**THE EXPLANATION**

Jack read the letter twice, then folded it up, slipped it back into the envelope and locked it up in his desk.

Annie, still standing at the window, spoke to Jack without turning around. "The Doctor did answer one of my questions Jack. I asked him if he had seen you since Satellite 5."

'Yes, I saw Jack not too long ago. He helped Martha and I solve a slight problem. Why do you ask?' said the Doctor.

"He's been waiting a long time to see you again. Jack wanted to know why he can't die. Did you give him an explanation?"

'Oh, yes, I told Jack how it all happened. But I think he should tell you the details if he wants to,' replied the Doctor.

Annie turned around and studied Jack's face for a moment. "You don't have to tell me anything unless you want to. I'm just glad the Doctor explained it to you."

Jack rose from the chair and joined Annie by the window. "You remember me telling you how I died fighting the Daleks on Satellite 5?" he asked. Annie nodded her head. "From what the Doctor told me, his companion, my friend Rose, somehow accessed the heart of the TARDIS and absorbed the power of the Time Vortex. With that power she destroyed the Daleks and brought me back to life. Being a human, Rose couldn't completely control this process and as a result, she brought me back permanently. I can never die."

"You're OK with that?" Annie asked.

"Pretty much," he replied.

She laid her hand on Jack's arm for a moment. "And Rose; is she alright?"

Jack nodded. "She's fine and living with her family." (He felt there was no need to tell Annie that Rose was stuck on a parallel Earth with no way back.)

"I'm glad you have your answer, Jack. It was the one thing that kept gnawing at you the whole time I've known you. When I first saw you at the café with Ianto today, you seemed so relaxed and happy. I figured you must have found your answer, or was it the pleasure of Ianto's company?" She said this last part with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

Jack smiled and almost blushed. "Let's say it was a little of both and leave it at that, OK?"

"Fair enough," replied Annie. "Well, I guess I can't put it off any longer. The Doctor's letter was about me, wasn't it Jack?"

"It was. Let's sit back down at the table and I'll tell you everything the Doctor told me." Jack led Annie back to her chair and then took her step by step through the incident as the Doctor had described it.

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**MEET THE TEAM**

It was like seeing a choreographed performance. Ianto walked into the Hub heading towards the boardroom and was joined in his walk by Owen, Tosh and Gwen in rapid succession. "I guess it's time for the grand introduction followed by a quick 'the world's not going to end today boys and girls' speech," Owen quipped.

"Stop it Owen," Tosh said. "It's obvious that Annie is very important to Jack and he wouldn't have asked us to join them if he didn't need our help. So let's hear what he has to say."

"All right, but I better not get shot this time," huffed Owen as they climb the stairs. When the team entered the boardroom, Jack was standing at the head of the table and Annie was sitting to his left. He introduced each one to Annie. "This is Owen, Toshiko, Gwen and you already met Ianto." Annie shook each person's hand in turn as they all got seated. Ianto and Gwen sat to Annie's left and Tosh and Owen sat to Jack's right.

Jack told them about the incident, but left out the details regarding the Doctor and his TARDIS (he wanted them focused on helping Annie; not wondering about the Doctor). "OK, anyone have any ideas or questions?" Jack inquired.

Owen leaned forward resting his arms on the table, already in his doctor mode. He asked, "So there's been no previous hint about this power you have. Nothing unusual in any of the medical tests you've had over the years?"

"None at all," replied Annie.

"What about feelings?" Gwen inquired. "Did you ever have a sense that you were different from other people?"

"I've always felt I was different from other people, but I thought it was the result of losing my parents, having to go through all those surgeries and not being able to do the things that normal children can do."

Ianto asked, "What do you think Jack? Do you think your level of effort to help Annie was just because you cared about her or did you sense there was more to it than that?"

Jack didn't answer right away. He mulled it over before saying, "When I rescued Annie from the car, she was badly injured, but I knew she was alive because she was crying. As I carried her away from the car, it exploded throwing me and Annie to the ground. After I stood back up with her in my arms she had stopped crying. I thought she was dead," Jack said. He stopped for a moment to clear his throat and then continued.

"Annie then took a deep breath and opened her eyes. She didn't cry anymore, but just place her hand on my chest and looked at me." That was when I felt it," he said.

"Felt what?" asked Tosh.

"Connected to her somehow," Jack replied. He briefly closed his eyes trying to remember that first moment. "It's hard to explain. As she looked at me I could hear her heartbeat and felt my heartbeat change its rhythm until it matched hers."

"Hang on half a mo'," Owen said. He left the boardroom for a moment and returned with some wireless monitors. "Just out of curiosity," he said as he placed one monitor on Jack's right wrist, "let's check it out." As he approached Annie he asked, "May I?" Annie held out her right wrist without hesitation. After he placed the monitor on her wrist Owen continued around the room and placed monitors on the others and him as well.

Taking his seat again, Owen punched a few keys on his laptop and the results appeared on the boardroom's main monitor. "As you can see, the readings on Tosh, Gwen, Ianto, and me show our heartbeats are steady, but not in synch with one another. Let's add Jack's reading to the mix," he said as he pressed another key. Jack's heartbeat joined the heartbeats of the rest of his team on the monitor and again a steady heartbeat, but not matching any of the others.

"Last, but not least, Annie." Her heartbeat appeared on the monitor beneath Jack's and everyone in the room watched as her heart beat in exact synch with Jack's heart. Owen removed the rest of the team's heart monitor readings from the main monitor leaving only Jack and Annie's readings. The sound of their heartbeats filled the silence of the room for a moment.

"Is there any difference in our heartbeats at all?" asked Jack unable to take his eyes off the monitor.

"If there is, it's so small that I can't detect it with my instruments," replied Owen.

"What does it mean?" Annie asked as she turned her focus away from the monitor and on to Owen.

"Honestly I have no idea," he said. "At this point it merely confirms what Jack felt when he rescued you from the car."

Jack turned away from the monitor and placed his hand reassuringly on Annie's hand. He looked at his team and said, "Obviously I can't be very objective about this situation, so I'm relying on all of you to figure out what tests and procedures need to be done so we can figure out what's happening and how Annie can learn to control her abilities."

"Abilities; does she have additional ones we haven't been told about, Jack?" Gwen asked with concern.

"You know everything we know, Gwen," Jack responded in a gentle tone. "The thing is we can't assume that our matching heartbeats and the energy pulse Annie generated are the only things she can do. There may be other abilities that haven't appeared yet. That's why," he continued, "I want every precaution taken to protect the team and Annie." Jack looked at each member of his team as he made this announcement.

He looked at Annie and said, "Annie, I know you're scared, but if anyone can figure this out it's my team. I trust them and I need you to trust them too. Plus I need your promise that you'll cooperate with them. Will you do that?"

Annie looked at Jack, "I promise Jack," she replied and looking at the others sitting as the table Annie said, "I promise all of you."

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**MOVING IN**

It was decided that Annie would move into the Hub and stay in one of the spare rooms in the infirmary. This would allow 24/7 observation and also provide a layer of security to protect her and those around her. Jack felt guilty about keeping her under constant surveillance, but the team insisted it was the safest approach to the situation. Annie was in total agreement and told Jack to "get over it," using one of his favorite sayings against him.

Gwen went with Annie to her lodgings (a bed and breakfast near the Millennium Centre) and retrieved her belongings. Her belongings didn't amount to much: One wheeled luggage case for clothes, a small bag of toiletries and a traveling case for her laptop, its accessories and her digital camera. Add the tote and shoulder bag she'd left at the Hub and one realized she traveled light by most women's standards.

When they returned to the Hub with her belongings, Gwen showed her which room she would use while she stayed with them. "Sorry, it's not as nice as the place you were staying. I'm sure it will just be for a short time."

"Actually it's better than most of the hospitals I've stayed at Gwen," Annie joked. "Besides, I have my work to keep me busy when you lot aren't putting me through my paces."

"What is your line of work?" Gwen inquired as she helped Annie hang up her clothes.

"I'm a writer," Annie responded. "Really," Gwen asked, "what kind of writing do you do?"

"Oh I've done everything from freelance articles to writing fiction. Mainly I've written a series of historical romances for the past few years."

"I like historical romances. Maybe I've read some of yours. What are some of the titles?" Gwen asked with genuine interest.

"Well my two best selling series have been the Scottish Highlander series and the RAF Lover series set during World War II," Annie said as she sat down on the bed to rest for a moment.

"I read the Highlander series when I was a teenager. Those stories were great," Gwen said with enthusiasm. "Haven't read the RAF Lover series, though," she admitted. "Did you write that series because of Jack?"

"Well, I thought that would sell better than a rogue time agent lover in a Sci-fi series. Besides, that would have been a little too close to home for me," Annie replied with a smile and mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Yeah, well I suppose that's true," agreed Gwen.

There was a knock on the door. "Everyone decent?" inquired Owen. He and Ianto entered after the girls told them to come in.

"Do we start the tests today, Owen?" Gwen asked.

"No, we'll start in the morning, but I would like you, Annie, to wear this monitor," he said as he showed her the bracelet-style monitor. "It's similar to the one we used earlier today, but it monitors all your vital signs without you having to be tethered to a machine."

Annie agreed to wear it. "What are all the vital signs that it monitors?" she asked as he put it on her right wrist.

"It monitors heartbeat and respiratory rate like the other one, but also monitors brain waves, REM, blood pressure, blood gases, and adrenaline levels.

As you can feel, it's lightweight and won't interfere with your movements and being waterproof, you can shower with it on, OK?"

"OK," Annie said. She looked at Owen for a moment and then asked him if they knew what procedures and tests they would start with tomorrow.

"Well, we've discussed it at length and think it's best we start with the routine medical tests. Once we have the test results we'll decide what to do next all right?" Owen asked.

Annie nodded her agreement and then looked at Ianto, who seemed a little uncomfortable. "Why do I get the feeling," she said to Ianto, "that you've drawn the short straw on some task that you'd really rather not do?"

Ianto reluctantly responded, "I don't know how else to say this, but in order to keep everyone safe, we decided that I should examine your belongings to make sure that you haven't. . ." Ianto struggled for words that would not come to him.

"Make sure I haven't brought any weapons of mass destruction with me?" Annie guessed.

Ianto looked relieved and said, "Yes I'm afraid so."

Annie stood up from the bed and smiled at Ianto. "You go right ahead and do what you've got to do Ianto," she said. "Just be sure to refold my underwear nicely when you're done, OK?" She walked out of the room with Gwen and did not see Ianto blush a deep red over this last remark.

Owen patted Ianto on the back and said, "Be brave my good man. I'll leave you alone with your task," and ambled out of the room.

As Annie walked with Gwen onto the main floor of the Hub she looked up at Jack who was sitting in his office going over reports. "I feel bad about putting Jack through all this. Is he OK?" Annie asked Gwen.

Gwen also looked at Jack and said, "He'll be fine. I'm certain that he's worried about you and wants to help you," she replied.

"Yeah, but he's also worried about all of you, because he doesn't know what's happening to me. He's probably wondering just like I am if I'm going to become some kind of monster and hurt one or all of you," Annie said quietly.

"Annie, we won't let that happen. That's why we're taking all these precautions." Gwen responded.

********************************************************************

**THE UPDATE **

Owen, Ianto and Tosh entered Jack's office a short time later. Jack looked at them and asked them for an update on everything.

"She's wearing the monitor. She didn't even hesitate about putting it on," Owen said.

"Does she know all of its functions?" Jack asked.

"She knows all about the monitor functions, but she's not aware that the monitor also has a GPS locator." Owen replied.

Ianto reported next. "I checked all her belongings including her cane. Nothing detected. Tosh checked out her laptop and electronics."

"All of which were fine. No viruses, no spyware, no hidden instruments or illegal transmitters within the electronics," Tosh said.

Jack nodded his head. "Thanks guys. I really appreciate the way you're handling this situation." He looked out his office window at Gwen and Annie chatting at Gwen's desk. "How's she doing so far?"

"She's handling this entire thing quite well Jack," Ianto said.

Owen added, "Annie's worried obviously, but she's a real trooper."

"I think she's more worried about you Jack," Tosh responded.

"She's always been that way, even when she was little and in tremendous pain. Always worried about everyone else," Jack said. "Does she have to stay inside the Hub the whole time?" he asked.

Ianto, Owen and Tosh looked at each other and shrugged. "No, we think it's OK for her to go out as long as she wears the monitor and one of us accompanies her," Tosh replied.

Jack looked at them and said, "Does 'one of us' include me?"

"Don't see why not," replied Ianto. "Besides we thought it would be good to see if any of her readings change dramatically when she's with you."

"Works for me," Jack said as he stood up from his desk and started to put on his coat.

"Jack," Owen said, "Would you mind wearing the regular heart monitor bracelet for awhile? I just want to see if yours and Annie's heartbeats are always in synch or if it's just when you're near each other."

Jack had already partially pulled his coat on, but stopped and turned to look at Owen. "Why?" Jack asked. "Do you think that might be important?"

Owen replied, "Possibly. Think about it Jack; if you and Annie are always in synch, how strong is your link to each other? Is it strong enough to hurt her if you're killed?"

Jack stared at Owen for a moment. Finally he said, "I hadn't even considered that possibility Owen. Of course I'll wear the monitor."

Owen attached the regular monitor to Jack's right arm. Jack finished pulling on his coat.

"It might be a good idea to be a little less gung ho too," Tosh suggested. "At least until we know more anyway."

"Right," Jack said as he nodded in agreement.

"Other than that no worries then," Ianto added trying to lighten the mood.

Jack realized what Ianto was trying to do. He smiled and said, "Yeah. No worries."

So, where are you planning to take Annie tonight?" Ianto asked.

"I'll take her to the café for dinner and maybe for a walk down to the bay. Don't worry; we'll be home before midnight."

"I'll leave the light on," responded Ianto. "I'm on duty all night, so see you when you get back."

Jack smiled at Ianto, nodded at the others and went down the stairs two at a time. "Hey Annie," Jack said as he walked towards Gwen and Annie. "My old man said I could have the car tonight; how about a date?"

*********************************************************************

**A DINNER AND A STROLL**

Jack and Annie had a quiet dinner at the café, which was unusual for them. Normally Jack would tell her some adventure he had had since he last talked to her or tell her naughty jokes, but not tonight.

Afterwards, Jack took her on a long walk down to the bay. The night was cold, but the clear night sky was awash with thousands of stars. Annie walked with her left arm looped through Jack's right and held her cane in her right hand. They didn't say much of anything until they got down to the bay. They were leaning against a rail gazing out over the bay, when Jack looked over at Annie and realized that she was growing old. He felt the familiar pain and anger that always happened whenever someone he had allowed himself to love grew old and would one day die and he'd feel another part of his heart torn away.

Sensing his mood change Annie said, "This is the part of the story when Wendy says to Peter Pan, and I'm paraphrasing here, 'I am old, Peter. I am ever so much more than twenty. I grew up long ago and I've forgotten how to fly.'"

Jack smiled (not too convincingly) and replied, "Oh, so now you're comparing me to a little boy who wears tights and flies around women's bedrooms?"

"No, of course not; although you'd look fantastic in tights," Annie said as she turned to look at him. "I'm just saying I'm not dead yet, Jack. But I think I've learned the hard way a little bit about what you must have gone through over the years."

"Do you mean when your adoptive parents, Ed and Mary died a few years ago?" asked Jack.

"Yes, but there's more to it than just losing Ed and Mary," responded Annie. "You and I have only spoken a few times since you went away to find the Doctor and although I've told you about most of my life, I haven't told you everything."

"Annie, you don't have to tell me every little detail about your life," Jack said.

"I know, but tomorrow when Owen starts running the medical tests, he will report the test results and might tell you something that I think you should hear from me," she replied. "Just like Wendy in Peter Pan, I was married once and had a child," Annie began, "My husband was a wonderful man I met in Scotland after I graduated from college. I was doing research for one of my books. His name was Andrew MacMillan and he loved me very much. You would have liked him.

I tried to dissuade him from marrying me, because he was such a healthy, active man and there was no way I could have gone off and done all the activities he loved to do. But he was almost as stubborn as you and eventually wore me down and I agreed to marry him."

"How long were you married?" Jack inquired.

"We were married for eight years. He'd go hiking and fishing while I stayed home working on my books. Every time he came home he'd bring me flowers or some lovely trinket. I was very much in love.

Andrew never asked for children, but I knew he'd make a wonderful father. I didn't do anything to get or not get pregnant. If it was going to happen it would. We'd been married for three years when I found out I was pregnant. Andrew was thrilled and frightened at the same time when I told him," Annie smiled at the memory.

"My pregnancy went surprisingly well and I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. He had all his parts in all the right places. We named him Michael Andrew MacMillan."

Jack just smiled, but didn't say anything, because he had a feeling of foreboding. He waited for Annie to continue.

"We were a very happy family, Jack. I felt complete. Then, when Michael was almost four years old, he and my husband Andrew were killed by a drunk driver." Silent tears rolled down Annie's face. "I never told you before because you've already known too much loss and pain."

"I'm so sorry Annie," Jack said. He drew Annie into his arms and held her while she cried quietly. He felt warm tears rolling down his own face. Slowly, her tears subsided. Jack took his handkerchief out and dried Annie's tears. His mobile started ringing.

"Shit," he said as he took his mobile out. Ianto was calling him. "Yeah," Jack gruffly said.

"Are you OK Jack?" Ianto asked. Jack hugged Annie with his right arm as he said, "I'm fine. Annie's fine," Jack responded. "Why?"

"Both of your heart rates went up and there was a bit of an energy surge recorded at your location. Are you positive you're both OK?" Ianto repeated himself. He sounded worried.

"I'm certain we're both OK," Jack assured him. "We're heading back to the Hub. See you in a few minutes."

"Right, see you soon." Ianto said as he rang off.

Jack put his mobile away and asked Annie if she was OK.

"No, but I will be," she answered. "Let's head back. And Jack,"

"Yeah?" he said.

"Thanks for listening and understanding," Annie said.

Jack gave her a brief smile and said, "Hey, that's what uncles are for, remember?"

They headed back to the car arm in arm.

**********************************************************

**THE USUAL MEDICAL TESTS**

Annie spent most of the next day with Owen and Gwen. Owen ran the usual medical tests as well as using the Bekaran device to scan Annie's body without any invasive procedures. Gwen helped Owen with some of the tests, but mainly she was there to provide moral support for Annie.

Tosh, Ianto and Jack were working on another assignment. Jack and Ianto were out of the office checking on a Weevil sighting and Tosh was assisting in their search using the link to the police communications system and the CCTV cameras spread throughout Cardiff.

By mid-afternoon Owen had run all his tests on Annie and now they simply had to wait for the results. Annie had given Owen information on the death of her family (not knowing that Jack had already told him) and the names and addresses of all the hospitals that she had been a patient in over the years. Owen would access the older hospital test reports on Annie and use them as a baseline comparison against the tests he ran that morning.

"We're almost done now. Just a few more of questions to go; your current medications are limited to the medicine for allergies and the pain, correct?" asked Owen. Annie nodded her head. "Do you always need your cane to help you walk or is it for bad days?"

"It's for bad days; I always try to have my cane with me, but I don't always need it," Annie explained.

"So are these 'bad days' having to do with pain or the functioning of your legs?" Gwen asked. "If you don't mind me asking," she added.

Annie replied, "Some days the pain is intense, other days it's the stiffness of the legs and sometimes it's a combination of both."

"Thank you Nurse Gwen," Owen said as he wrote on the chart.

Gwen replied, "Sorry Dr. Owen," trying to look chastened.

Looking at Annie Owen asked, "Do you use a pain intensity scale?"

"Yes, in fact, Jack introduced the idea to me and my adoptive parents when I was a child. We use the 'on of scale of 1 to 10, 10 being call 911 or rather 999 here in the UK' measurement."

"Good, we'll use your method to measure pain levels then," Owen replied as he finished writing on the chart.

"OK Annie," Owen said. "Now that I've made you feel like a pin cushion all we have to do is wait for the test results and then we'll figure out what's next."

"Look at the time," remarked Gwen. "It's half past 2:00 o'clock. You must be starving Annie. I know I am."

"Yes I am hungry," admitted Annie. "Do you have any Chinese restaurants nearby?"

"There's one not too far from here. Shall I drive or do you feel like walking?" asked Gwen.

"I'd rather walk," Annie responded. She looked over at Owen. "Owen, do you want to come along with us or could we bring something back for you?"

"I have to access those hospital reports and wait for the test results, so I better stay here," Owen absentmindedly responded without looking up from his computer screen. "Some Kung Pao chicken with spring rolls would be lovely, thanks."

"And how about you Tosh?" asked Gwen as she and Annie were walking past Tosh's station.

"Sounds great," Tosh replied. "You might want to get extra food, because Ianto and Jack have caught a Weevil and will be returning to the Hub soon. I'm sure they'll be hungry."

"OK, I'll get our usual choices, so there's something for everyone. We'll be back in two shakes," Gwen yelled back over her shoulder as she and Annie headed out through the front office.

********************************************

**ANNIE MEETS A WEEVIL**

Jack and Ianto arrived back at the Hub a short time later with another Weevil.

"Where's Annie?" asked Jack as he and Ianto wrestled with the Weevil.

"She and Gwen went out to get some Chinese food for all of us," Tosh responded. "They'll be back any moment. Do you need some extra help?" she asked.

"No, we've got him, but he's one pissed off Weevil, because we didn't let him have his fun. Course his idea of fun was to try and rip out a little old lady's throat," Jack replied.

Ianto and Jack were semi-dragging the Weevil down the stairs to the holding cells, when Annie and Gwen came in through the cogwheel door carrying the Chinese food.

The Weevil saw his chance and decided to make a break for the open door. He knocked Jack and Ianto off their feet and started lumbering toward the door.

Gwen saw the Weevil coming towards them and she dropped the bags of food she was carrying and started to pull her gun out. Jack and Ianto had recovered and were chasing the Weevil.

"Annie, get out of the way!" yelled Gwen, but Annie appeared not to hear Gwen. Instead she dropped her bags and cane where she was, took a defensive stance and put out her hands as if she was holding an imaginary basketball. Gwen, Jack and Ianto could see a small ball of energy form in between her hands. Apparently, the Weevil could see the ball of energy too, because he stopped about three feet away from Annie. She was looking curiously at the ball of energy and back to the Weevil. It appeared Annie was waiting to see if the Weevil would make a move.

The Weevil didn't cower, but he didn't move; he was simply staring at Annie. Jack and Ianto grabbed the Weevil from behind and stunned him. The Weevil crumpled to the floor.

Jack approached Annie and said, "It's OK now Annie. The Weevil's been neutralized. Try to turn off the energy ball in front of you."

Tosh and Owen arrived on the scene as Annie said, "I'm not sure how to turn it off, Jack."

Owen said softly, "Annie, try closing your eyes and relaxing. Think to yourself, 'I'm OK, no one's been hurt, and I don't have to defend myself. Give it a try."

Annie followed Owen's instructions. She closed her eyes, and visibly relaxed. Slowly, the ball of energy dissipated. She opened her eyes again and said, "I did it. It worked," and then her face went pale and she started to sway. Owen and Jack reached her at the same time. They both steadied her so she didn't fall. Tosh brought over a chair and they helped her sit down.

Owen crouched down beside Annie and told her, "Take some nice slow, deep breaths Annie. That's good. You're doing great." He took out a pen light and shined it in both of Annie's eyes. Next he pulled out a specialized PDA and read the signals he was receiving from the wireless monitor on her wrist. He nodded in satisfaction and said to Jack and the others, "Her vital signs are fine. Tosh and I can get her down to the infirmary Jack, so why don't you and Ianto get Mr. Potato Head down to a holding cell?"

Jack didn't move he just kept gazing at Annie. Ianto came up behind him and said, "Come on Jack; let Owen do what he does best. You can go and see her after we put the Weevil in a cell."

He looked from Ianto to Owen and asked, "You're sure she's OK?"

Owen nodded again. "Yes Jack I'm sure," he confirmed as he looked Jack directly in the eye. Jack nodded his thanks and turned to help Ianto take the Weevil downstairs.

Gwen had put her gun away and was retrieving the bags containing their lunch of Chinese food from the floor. "I'll take these up to the boardroom and see you there shortly."

"Thanks Gwen," Tosh said as she and Owen helped Annie to the infirmary.

********************************************

**A LATE LUNCH**

Jack and Ianto arrived in the boardroom after they had locked the Weevil up. Gwen and Tosh were putting the Chinese food out and plates, chopsticks, forks, serving spoons, and napkins.

Before Jack could ask how Annie was doing, Tosh smiled at him and said, "Annie's fine Jack. Owen's with her. Why don't you sit down and eat something?"

"I'll have something to eat after I check on Annie," he said and turned to walk out the door, only to find Owen walking into the room with Annie.

"Right now what Annie needs is something to eat and a nice cup of tea. Doctor's orders," Owen said as he helped Annie into her chair.

"Shouldn't she be resting in bed?" asked Jack.

"I am in the room, Jack," Annie said smiling at him. "Owen's right; what I need right now is something to eat. I'm starving. Thankfully the food seems to have survived the incident just fine."

"Jack, sit down and stop acting like a mother hen," Gwen quipped. "I think what everyone needs is some food."

After a few minutes, everyone was sitting down eating Chinese food and Annie was also drinking a nice cup of tea that Ianto had thoughtfully provided.

"See Jack; Annie's already perking up and getting the color back into her face," Owen said while crunching on a spring roll.

"Thank you, Dr. Owen, I can see that she's feeling better," replied Jack finally relaxing and smiling at Annie.

"Do you feel up to talking about what happened?" Jack asked Annie. Annie nodded her head as she finished munching on a cream cheese wonton.

"Great," said Gwen, "Because I've got a question for you Annie. Why the hell didn't you get out of the way when I told you to?" It was obvious Gwen had wanted to ask that question for the last hour. Annie looked embarrassed.

Annie apologized. "I'm sorry Gwen. I heard you, but it was as if I was on autopilot. Didn't even realize what I was doing at first and by then it was too late. Are we OK?" she asked Gwen.

Gwen gave Annie a quick smile. "Yeah we're OK. You just scared the hell out of me that's all."

Ianto asked, "Why didn't you fire that energy bolt at the Weevil like you did on that subway in California?"

"I'm not sure; possibly I didn't because it was different this time." She looked at Jack and the others as she explained. "There weren't any explosions or smoke, it wasn't the first time I had created the energy ball or whatever you want to call it, the lights were on and I knew you, Jack and Gwen were there with me.

"That's as plausible an explanation as any," admitted Jack. "Tosh, did our security cameras catch the event?" he inquired.

Tosh pushed her plate away and tapped some commands on her laptop. "Yes they did. Here's the best shot."

Everyone looked at the monitor as the digital feed replayed the scene. Annie entered first followed by Gwen. Both women carried bags of food. The commotion caused by the Weevil startled them. Gwen dropped her bags, drew her gun and yelled for Annie to move. Annie instead dropped her bags and cane, planted her feet apart and put her hands in front of her. The energy ball formed and the Weevil abruptly stopped in front of her. Jack and Ianto appeared and subdued the Weevil.

"Stop it right there Tosh," Owen said. "Leave that up on one side of the screen and let me put up some data next to it." He punched his laptop and the data appeared on the screen.

"Now remember we were getting this constant flow of readings from the wrist monitor. Tosh, synchronize the video feed with the readings from the wrist monitor and then back both of them up until right before Annie dropped her cane."

It took Tosh less than a minute to perform the task.

"OK, now play both of them forward, but slowly. Watch what happens to Annie's readings after she dropped her cane," said Owen.

Everyone watched the screen as Owen talked them through the scene. "Now watch her brain waves as she put her hands out. See? Right there," he hit the pause button. "There's a surge of electrical activity in her brain right before the energy ball appears." Owen hit the play button and said, "The electrical activity continues until Annie closes her eyes and starts to relax. Then the energy ball dissipates, and the electrical activity in her brain bottoms out, which is probably why she almost fainted."

"Does all the energy come from me or am I drawing energy from some other source?" Annie asked.

Tosh answered, "I found no drain on any of our equipment and no increase in rift activity. It appears you used your own body to create the energy ball."

"Explains why she passed out after the incident on the subway and almost fainted today," commented Owen.

"Did you get the test results back?" asked Jack.

"I've gotten some of the test results. A few aren't finished yet," replied Owen. "Plus I'm still extracting the old test results and various reports from the previous hospitals. I should have all of my results in by morning and have all the old information to compare against it."

"Anything significant in the test results you've gotten so far?"

"Nothing unusual; everything's within normal ranges," reported Owen.

"OK, thanks Owen, Tosh. Anyone have any other ideas or suggestions?" Jack asked as he looked at the rest of the team.

"Actually, I was wondering if it would be possible to run some mental acuity tests," Tosh responded.

"You mean like IQ tests? Whatever for?" inquired Annie with a puzzled expression.

Tosh explained, "The kind of tests I'm suggesting actually measure IQ and much more. They cover the gambit from memory recall, perception, ESP, to telekinesis."

"Wow, I get a headache, just thinking about those tests," Annie said. "Do you really think those tests might give us some useful information?"

"Oh yes definitely," Tosh nodded her head enthusiastically at Annie.

"Oh, alright, I'll do the tests," agreed Annie. "However, you must pay my usual fee."

"Fee?" responded Tosh. "I'm sorry; I don't know what you mean." Tosh looked to Jack for help.

Jack smiled at Tosh and said, "I can explain Tosh. You see when Annie was little and had to have any surgery, physical therapy,"

"Or anything involving a needle," Annie reminded him.

"Or anything involving a needle," Jack repeated as he gave Annie one of his dazzling smiles and a quick squeeze of her hand, "Her adoptive parents and I always promised she could have all the chocolate she wanted and could choose the brand of chocolate."

"Oh, OK; I agree to your fee then," Tosh said to Annie.

Owen commented, "You didn't mention a fee to me this morning Annie; why not?"

"Because you remind me of a boy I had a crush on in the fifth grade," Annie said as she put her right elbow on the table and propped her head on her right hand. "I cut you some slack this morning, but anymore tests and you'll have to pay the fee too."

Jack looked at Owen thoughtfully and then said to Annie, "He does kind of resemble Duane, only Duane had bigger ears."

Owen ignored Jack and said to Annie, "I'll take that as a compliment Annie. Thank you."

Annie smiled at Owen as she stood up. "That's the way I meant it." She stretched and yawned. "Excuse me, but I think a nap sounds like a good idea right now, unless there's something else you want me to do right now."

Jack spoke for the team, "Nope, I think you've had enough excitement for one day. Do you need help getting to your room?"

"I'll be fine thanks. See you guys later." Annie took her time going down the stairs using both the handrail and her cane to steady her as she went.

"You still getting steady readings from the wrist monitor?" Jack asked Owen.

Owen tapped the laptop before replying, "Signal from the monitor is working fine. She's tired, obviously, but her vital signs are good. I'll check her vitals every hour just to be sure, Jack. I'm on the nightshift duty tonight and I'll let you know if anything changes."

"Good. So, business as usual until tomorrow morning at least," responded Jack.

The meeting broke up and the team went back to normal activities; at least normal by Torchwood standards.

******************************************************

**CRISPS ANYONE?**

Owen, as promised, checked on Annie at regular intervals by using the wrist monitor and occasionally using the small camera in her room. The camera was set to infrared so Owen could see heat patterns and also to maintain some privacy for Annie.

By the time Annie woke up from her nap it was 6:00 PM. Tosh and Gwen had gone home for the evening, Owen was at his work station and Jack was in his office. Annie walked around the Hub stretching her legs and then took her laptop up to the boardroom to do some work on her latest novel.

Around 8:30 PM Ianto walked into the boardroom bearing a tray.

"Ianto, I thought you'd gone home," Annie said.

"I did actually," Ianto replied as he put the tray down on the boardroom table. "But I realized that you've only had breakfast and lunch and I thought I should at least bring some sandwiches by in case you might be hungry."

"Thank you Ianto," Annie said. "You're such a thoughtful person. I am hungry."

"Used to be you'd bring me sandwiches Ianto," Jack mockingly said from behind Ianto.

"Not to worry, Jack," Ianto replied, "I've brought enough for all of us, including Owen."

That's why we love you," Jack replied as he sat down next to Annie. As they started to reach for the sandwiches, Owen wandered in. "Saw Ianto come in earlier and figured, hoped actually, that he was bringing food. Great! Plenty for everyone," he sat down and they helped themselves to the sandwiches and crisps.

While they ate Jack regaled them with stories from the Prohibition era in America.

********************************************************

**CAN'T SLEEP**

Around 2:00 AM, Jack stopped by Owen's station. "How's Annie doing?" he asked Owen.

Owen, yawned slightly before he said, "Gwen was right; you really are such a mother hen you're practically clucking, but her readings are fine in spite of the insomnia. Annie told me that she has bouts of it from time to time."

"You mean she's still up? Where is she?" Jack asked.

"Back up in the boardroom trying to work on her novel," replied Owen.

Jack looked up toward the boardroom and saw Annie pacing around the room. "I think I'll just go and chat with her," he responded and walked away from Owen without looking back.

Annie had stopped pacing and was standing at the table staring at the words on her laptop.

"Creative juices not flowing?" Jack quipped as he entered the room.

"Not one damn drop," Annie said as she continued to stare at the screen. She let out a sigh and closed the laptop. "I give up; my brain has gone on vacation to the Bahamas without me." She walked over to the couch and sat down placing her cane at the end of the couch.

Jack sat down beside her. "Is that all that's keeping you awake at this hour?" he said as he put his right arm around Annie's shoulders.

"No, it's just one of a thousand thoughts and questions that are buzzing around inside my head. I wish I could just shush them all so I can go to sleep."

"Here, lean your head against my shoulder and just try to relax," Jack said.

Annie did as he suggested, sighed and closed her eyes. "This is what you use to do the night before any of my surgeries. The night duty nurse didn't approve of you lying on my bed," she said. "Somehow you always sweet talked her into letting you stay with me. I remember you'd tell me stories and I'd listen to your voice and heartbeat. It always did the trick."

Jack leaned his head against Annie's. "Let's see if I still have the touch," he said quietly. They sat there on the couch and Jack told her how he recruited, Owen, Tosh, Ianto and Gwen for his Torchwood team. Annie placed her right hand on the center of Jack's chest as she slowly drifted off to sleep. Eventually Jack's eyes closed and he too fell asleep.


	2. Glows and Dreams

_FYI_

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

***********************************************

**THE BOARDROOM**

Owen wondered what the hell was beeping. Nothing in his apartment made a beeping noise. "That's because I'm not in my apartment" he thought; "I'm at work." He eyes popped opened and he realized he had fallen asleep at his desk. According to his watch it was 6:30 a.m. The screen to his left was beeping – the one linked to Annie's wrist monitor.

Quickly scanning the readings he discovered a power surge. Was there a problem with the wrist monitor? A quick diagnostic test showed the monitor was working properly. Owen punched up the camera in Annie's room; no Annie. The last place he'd seen Annie was the boardroom.

Glancing up to the boardroom windows Owen saw a pulsing glow coming from the boardroom. He switched on the boardroom remote camera. "What the hell?!?" he exclaimed.

On the screen was a view of the boardroom and the camera was focused on the couch. Annie was asleep, leaning against Jack with her right hand on his chest. Jack appeared to be sleeping too; his right arm around Annie's shoulders and his head resting against Annie's. What grabbed Owen's attention was the pulsating glow surrounding both of them. Both Jack and Annie were breathing normally oblivious to the energy field surrounding them. A glance at the screen with Annie's readings showed every vital sign was normal except for her brain activity.

She was in REM sleep and yet with the level of electrical activity going on in her brain, she should have been wide awake.

"What's going on in the boardroom?" said a voice behind Owen, causing him to jump.

"Dammit Tosh! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" complained Owen in an intense whisper.

"Sorry," said Tosh. "Why are you whispering?"

"Keep your voice down," replied Owen. "You saw the glowing light in the boardroom?" He pointed toward the windows upstairs.

Toshiko looked up and nodded. "What is it?" she asked.

"You tell me; take a look at the screens," Owen replied.

Tosh looked at the camera shot from the boardroom and then the monitor displaying Annie's vital signs. "She's asleep, but her brain electrical activity is too high. Is she generating the energy field or is it a combination of her and Jack?"

"I think she's generating it by herself," Owen said. He thought a moment and then told Tosh, "I want to get closer to the event. Stay here and watch the readings. Let me know if anything changes."

"You're not going to try and wake them up are you?" Tosh asked, concerned.

"No way; potentially dangerous – especially for me," Owen replied.

Tosh took over watching the screens. Owen put on a wireless headset, grabbed a scanner and then climbed the stairs as quietly as possible.

He cautiously entered the boardroom and walked toward Jack and Annie.

"No change in the energy field Owen," Toshiko whispered into his earpiece.

Owen held the scanner toward Annie and whispered to Toshiko, "Start recording; the scanner might be able to pick up more details from this closer proximity."

"Recorders are online. Is Jack OK?" Tosh asked.

"Tell Tosh I'm fine," whispered Jack as he opened his eyes and looked at Owen. "Whatever this energy field is it doesn't act like a defense mechanism; more like a warm fuzzy hug."

Owen reached out his hand toward the energy field; the field expanded just enough to encompass his hand. "Like you said Jack, a warm fuzzy hug," Owen said.

"Leave the scanner on the table to record. I don't want to wake Annie up. You and Tosh observe and let's see what happens as she wakes up naturally," Jack whispered.

Owen nodded in agreement. "I'll phone Ianto and Gwen and give them a head up. That way they'll know to come in quietly. Talk to you later," he said to Jack as he quietly left the room.

Jack closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

***********************************************************

**DID I SNORE?**

Two hours later Gwen, Ianto, Tosh, and Owen were gathered around Owen's work station watching the monitor displaying the view of the boardroom. They were drinking coffee and talking quietly amongst themselves.

"Look," said Gwen, "Jack's opened his eyes. What's he doing? Is he signaling us with his left hand?"

Jack was repeating a pattern of gestures with his left hand. Ianto grabbed a notepad and pen off of Owen's desk and said, "I've seen this before; he's using the American Sign Language (ASL) alphabet." He watched for a moment and then started writing down what Jack was signing. A moment later he had Jack's message. "Jack says Annie is starting to wake up."

Owen looked at Annie's readings and confirmed she was waking up. "Tosh, what about the energy field?" he asked.

"The energy level is dropping and you can see on the boardroom camera that it's visibly dissipating." The energy field was slowly disappearing as Annie stirred and woke up.

"Morning sleepy head," Jack said. "Do you feel rested?"

"Yes I do," replied Annie. "You still have the magic touch."

"I glad you got some sleep. You put on quite a show when you sleep," Jack said.

"Did I snore or talk in my sleep?" Annie asked, puzzled.

"No," Jack replied as he chuckled. "But you put on one hell of a light show."

******************************************

**THE VIDEO AND ANALYSIS**

They all sat and watched the playback of the video recording from the previous night. Afterwards Annie got up and paced the room, her cane making a slight thumping noise as she moved. Finally, she plopped down in her chair, hung her cane on the table and said, "Shit. Another mystery to solve and we haven't even had a chance to solve the other ones." Annie looked over at Owen. "You're sure the energy only came from me and not from Jack?" she asked point blank.

"Positive," Owen replied.

"Well that's just peachy keen. Maybe I should take my act on the road," she continued, "I can see the banner now. 'Come one and all; see the human glowworm. And if you're really lucky, maybe a volunteer from the audience will piss her off and she'll nail him with an energy bolt.'"

Jack chuckled at her tirade. "You could probably win the Eurovision talent contest with that act," he said. "But," he said as he leaned toward her, "you need to get back on track, Annie so we can figure all these things out together."

"I know, I know," sighed 's just a little overwhelming right now and my mind's coming up with nothing."

Ianto made a little cough before asking, "Jack, remember the other night when you and Annie took a walk down to the bay?"

"Yeah, you called me on my mobile," responded Jack.

"Right," continued Ianto. "I called you because both of your heart rates had increased and,"

"And you said there was a slight power surge in our vicinity," Jack said as he completed Ianto's sentence." "Ianto, did you just notice the surge on the monitor or did you also see it on the CCTV?"

"Just the monitor; there wasn't a CCTV right in your area," Ianto replied.

Owen jumped in saying, "OK the power surge factor could be a possible match, but both of your heart rates last night and this morning were slow and steady, opposite of what Ianto observed. What other element was present at both incidents?"

"Emotion." Everyone turned their attention to Annie. Her eyes weren't focused on anyone in particular because she was deep in thought. She continued, "The first time I was upset and crying, but I wasn't upset last night."

"What were you feeling last?" Ianto asked.

"Happy," she replied with a smile. "When Jack came into the room, sat down beside me, had me rest my head on his chest, and started talking quietly to me like he used to do when I was little it brought back happy memories from my childhood."

There was a moment of awkward silence; Jack got up from the table and went and gazed out the window, Annie looked at Jack's back and then the floor, Tosh got busy with her laptop, Ianto picked up the coffee cups and Owen and Gwen shuffled papers.

Jack took a deep breath before turning around and looking at the team. "I think Annie's right. Emotion is a factor in triggering an event. Agreed?"

The team nodded their agreement. "I agree it's a factor in triggering an event Jack," replied Owen. "But it's not the cause."

"No, it's not the cause, but it's a start," Jack said as he looked at Annie. "It's a start."

********************************************************************

**THE CARD TRICK**

They went ahead with the tests that Tosh had scheduled for the day since no one could think of a different approach to try. Already Tosh and Annie had completed the standard tests (e.g., IQ and abstract thinking). While Tosh analyzed the test results, Ianto started Annie on an ESP test.

He held up one card at a time and had Annie guess what shape was displayed on each card. Annie started slowly and was getting a few correct, then she started guessing the right shape on each card. Ianto was amazed; then Jack walked up behind Annie.

"I can't believe you're doing that," Jack admonished Annie.

"Jack, why are you saying that; she's getting every card correct now," Ianto said.

"Amazing isn't it?" Jack replied. "Try a few cards on me," he said to Ianto.

"Alright," Ianto said and he held up a series of cards one after another for Jack.

"Square, triangle, circle, line, oval, rectangle," Jack said correctly.

"You did even better than Annie!" Ianto said.

Jack shook his head and smiled at Ianto. "Oh I am better than Annie. In fact I taught her how to do it." Nudging Annie he said, "Tell him Annie."

Ianto looked from Jack to Annie. "Tell me what?" he asked.

Annie, looking slightly guilty explained, "Jack taught me how to play poker when I was little. One of the tricks is to utilize the environment around you. I can see the symbols on the cards; they're reflected on the glass wall behind you. Sorry."

Turning around and confirming that the cards did reflect in the glass; Ianto turned back and looked, not at Annie, but Jack.

"OK, the next time we play strip poker Ianto I'll sit where you're sitting. Fair enough?" asked Jack.

Giving a faint smile, Ianto replied, "Fair enough Jack."

"Now to make this test more accurate let's try this," Jack said. He pulled out his handkerchief and tied it over Annie's eyes; waved his hand in front of her face. "How many fingers am I holding up?" Jack asked.

"The rude one," replied Annie. "Don't have to be psychic to know that, right Jack?" she asked.

Jack laughed and said, "You're right; just proves you know me way too well. OK Ianto you can restart the test. I'll talk to you guys later."

Ianto and Annie finished the test a short time later. "You have some free time to do as you please Annie; once Tosh has analyzed all the test results we'll get together for an update report. OK by you?"

"Sounds great; thanks Ianto."

"No problem. It's all part the service," replied Ianto.

"I mean thanks for being a good sport and for being here for Jack and me," Annie said. "Could I ask you for a real big favor?"

"Of course; what do you need?" he asked.

"What I'm asking you," she began and then hesitated before continuing. Quietly she said, "If I should become dangerous," she raised her hand to stop Ianto from protesting. Annie walked up to Ianto and grasped his hands. "If it becomes necessary to stop me or even kill me, will you make sure that Jack isn't the one who does it?"

Ianto felt a strange warmth in his hands and looking down discovered that her hands and his were glowing; the same type of glow that she and Jack shared last night. Looking back at her eyes he felt as if she was seeing into his soul.

"Look, I know that you've experienced tremendous sacrifice, pain and loss – no, Jack and the others haven't said anything to me; multiply that by more than a century and try to imagine what Jack has gone through.

You and Jack have found some peace together. You're smart and strong and you care what happens to your friends and to this planet. Will you promise to try and make sure Jack isn't the one who has to stop me if that moment happens?" asked Annie.

Ianto felt a tremendous sense of compassion and love for Annie. Without hesitating he said, "If that moment should come Annie, I'll do everything I possibly can to help you and to protect Jack."

Annie gave Ianto a big hug and whispered, "Thank you Ianto. Thank you."

They held each other for a moment longer before letting go. Ianto picked up the paperwork from the test, nodded at Annie and left the room. She turned and walked out the other door and headed to her room.

Owen, Tosh, Jack, and Gwen had observed the whole exchange between Ianto and Annie while standing around Tosh's work station. "The levels weren't quite as high as last night, but still impressive; now we know she can create the energy field with other people besides Jack," said Owen.

"I feel bad watching them like that," said Gwen.

"Me too, Gwen," said Tosh. "But remember we're trying to help Annie and we can't ignore anything that might help us figure things out."

"She talked so quietly I couldn't hear; I wondered what she talked to Ianto about," murmured Owen. "Do you have any idea, Jack?"

Jack stood there, head slightly tilted downward with both hands shoved into his pockets, staring at the monitor which was focused on a now empty room. "I have a pretty good idea what it was about; she asked Ianto to make sure I'm not the one to kill her if she becomes too dangerous. Am I right, Ianto?"

No one else was aware that Ianto had walked up behind them. "That's exactly what she asked me Jack," he replied. "Did any of you tell Annie anything about me?"

They all shook their heads. "Then she is psychic at least on an emotional level. I'm not sure she actually knows the full details of any particular event though," said Ianto.

Ianto handed the test papers to Tosh. "If you need me I'll be in the front office," he said and walked away.

Jack followed Ianto. Walking side by side Jack asked Ianto, "You told her yes, didn't you?"

"Of course I did. She loves you Jack and wants to protect you; like I do," Ianto said as he stopped and turned to Jack.

Jack cradled Ianto's face in his hands and said, "I know you do Ianto," and kissed him. "I know you do."

**************************************************************

**THE LATE NIGHT AUTHOR**

Hours later, Gwen had gone home to Rhys, Ianto and Owen were out checking a Weevil sighting, Tosh was running some computer simulations, and Jack was going over reports. Tired of looking at reports Jack wandered over to Tosh's work station and gazed at the monitor that was focused on Annie's room.

Annie's fingers were flying over her keyboard; so many thoughts and ideas running through her mind. She hadn't even slowed down when Ianto brought her some pizza earlier in the evening for dinner; just thanked him and continued keyboarding at breakneck speed. There was a sense of urgency in her work, as if she knew time was running out.

"Wow she's on fire tonight," Tosh said to Jack as she joined him by the monitor.

"She has her creative juices back," remarked Jack. "I've seen her like this before; she'll go days at this pace when her story is falling into place, because she's afraid if she stops before she's entered it into her laptop she'll forget an important part of the story."

Tosh looked at Jack thoughtfully. "You're impressed by what Annie does, aren't you?"

Jack smiled like a proud uncle. "You bet! Look at her; she almost died as a child, endured so many surgeries and so much pain and yet she creates these wonderful, positive stories out of her own mind."

He shook his head in wonder. "Tosh, the whole team has seen and done things that Annie will never know about and yet she can realistically create moments in time that I've lived through and pull me back in time just with her words. But, she writes historical romances which aren't considered important works of literature, so only a few people realize just how good she is at her craft."

"You know she is great at what she does Jack and you've told her so," Tosh replied. "I know that means the world to Annie."

"Yeah, but I've always felt the world should know too," Jack complained.

"Maybe they will one day Jack. Maybe will," Tosh murmured as they watched Annie keyboarding away.

***************************************************************

**GLOWING ALONE**

Sometime in the early hours of the morning Ianto and Owen came into the Hub tired and frustrated. Jack wandered out of his office, came down the stairs and joined them at Owen's workstation. "False alarm?" he asked.

"We checked out the calls but found absolutely nothing; no Weevils, alien artifacts or a rift opening. If I didn't know better I'd say the police were having us on," Owen complained.

Jack shook his head. "They like a good joke, but they've never sent us on a wild goose chase."

Changing the subject Jack asked, "Do you have Annie's medical test results Owen?"

"Yes, I finished them before Ianto and I went out," replied Owen.

Jack waited for Owen to say something; when Owen didn't continue Jack said, "And?"

Owen rubbed his face with his hands trying to wake up. "And nothing; no unusual blood test results, scans didn't show up anything unexpected. Annie is pretty healthy considering the trauma her body went through when she was young. According to all the test results she matches the standard medical profile for a 52-year old post-menopausal woman. The only other information I have is that yours and Annie's heartbeats are in synch only when you're in close proximity. When you and Ianto were out catching that Weevil your heartbeat was different from Annie's. "

The three of them said nothing for a moment each lost in their own thoughts.

Then Ianto asked, "Post-menopausal? When did she go through menopause?"

Owen replied, "It was confirmed by blood tests about a month ago. . . ." A thought popped into Owen's head. Looking at Ianto and Jack he said, "If Annie's father was the alien it could explain why her abilities only appeared recently." The more Owen thought about it the more convinced he became.

Jack was following Owen and Ianto's line of thought. "So because she's female her human hormones blocked her abilities until she went through menopause. But her female hormones didn't kick in until she hit puberty; so why no abilities when she was little?"

"We know she had one ability," Ianto said. "She bonded with you when you rescued her from the burning car. Perhaps that was the only ability she was capable of using as a child."

Jack thought about it for a moment. "You could be right. Look you're both tired; why don't you guys go home and get some sleep. We can start checking this theory out later in the morning." he said.

"Jack, I think you better see this," Tosh said with obvious concern in her voice.

All three men quickly reached Tosh's workstation. "Look," was all Tosh said as she pointed to the CCTV monitor. Looking at the monitor they saw Annie was standing in the middle of her room. Her hands were glowing, but not like before – stronger.

Owen went to the monitor where Annie's readings were projected. "The power surge is increasing," he said as he looked back to the CCTV monitor. The energy field had enveloped Annie completely and the glow was intensifying as they watched.

Jack hit the intercom button. "Annie, can you hear me?"

Annie looked up at the camera and said, "I can hear you Jack. The glow just started up. I don't know how or why. What the hell is going on?"

"Hang on Annie, we're on our way," Jack replied. "Tosh, monitor Annie's readings. Owen and Ianto you're with me," Jack shouted as he started running towards Annie's room. Ianto was running behind Jack; Owen grabbed his medical kit and followed.

"Annie, it's me Tosh. You're not alone; just keep talking to me."

"I'm scared Tosh," Annie replied.

Tosh could practically feel Annie's fear through the monitor. "Scared is OK Annie. Tell me anything. Do you feel the surge increasing, are you in pain? How's your story coming?"

"I seem to have a terrible case of writer's block at the moment," Annie said.

Tosh gave a little laugh at that response. "Perfectly understandable, considering the circumstances; are you in any pain?"

"No, I just feel tingly all over," Annie said. Jack, Ianto and Owen came bursting into her room.

"We're here Annie," Jack said in a calm voice, his hands extended out toward Annie, but not touching her or the energy field. "Don't move just yet. Tosh, what about the energy field? Is it increasing?"

"It's the highest reading we've recorded so far, but it's steady now," Tosh said through the intercom.

"Owen, how are her medical readings?"

Owen had out his PDA reviewing Annie's vital signs. Finally, he said, "Her heart and breathing rates are up, but not dangerously." Owen punched a few more buttons while frowning at his PDA.

Seeing Owen's expression, Ianto said, "That frowny face of yours is never a good sign. What else is going on Owen?"

Looking up from his PDA, Owen looked at Ianto, Annie and Jack before replying. "The other thing is not about Annie, it's about you Jack. Your heartbeat isn't in synch with Annie's anymore and yet you're in the same room."

"We'll worry about that later," Jack replied. "First we have to help Annie get her energy field under control. Anyone have any ideas?"

"She's always been in physical contact with you or Ianto the other times we seen this energy field," Owen said. "If the energy field wasn't so high, I'd have suggested one of you hold her hands. But I can't tell you for certain what would happen now if you did.

Looking from Owen to Ianto and finally to Annie, Jack said, "I'm the logical choice." Jack hesitated before asking Owen, "You can't say for certain whether this will help or hurt Annie, right?"

"It may help her or hurt both of you. Frankly, I'm at a loss on this one. The only other thing I can suggest is simply waiting and seeing what happens," Owen said as he shrugged.

Jack turned to Annie. "It's up to you Annie, what do you want to do?"

"I'm sorry Jack, I don't think I can wait, but I don't want to hurt you either," Annie whispered.

"It's OK Annie, remember I can't die; but trying this may hurt you. I'm willing to try it if you want to," Jack replied. He held both of his hands out to Annie. "It's up to you," he said.

Annie stared at Jack's hands and then looked into his eyes. She trusted Jack when she was a child and she still trusted this strange wonderful man. "Let's try it," she said as she reached out and grasped his hands.

Jack felt an initial shock like plunging into frigid water, but he didn't let go. Annie's energy field flow around and enveloped both him and Annie.

"That brought the energy level down a bit," Tosh said from her work station.

"Her heart rate and blood pressure are still high though," Owen commented as he continued to monitor Annie.

"Are you OK Jack?" Annie asked.

Jack nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm OK now. First contact was a whopper, but it's OK now."

"Good," Annie replied. "Now what?" she asked of no one in particular.

The room was quiet for a moment. Finally, Jack asked, "Remember when you were little Annie and how we would help you cope with the pain?"

"I remember something about pushing away the pain," she replied, "but I don't recall how we did it."

"That's OK, I'll show you how," Jack replied. "It'll probably work better if we can sit down. Do you think you can move enough to get to the chairs?" he asked.

"Better yet, let's have the chairs come to you," Ianto said as he grabbed the chairs from the table. How do you want them placed Jack?"

"Thanks Ianto. Place them facing each other and just a little bit apart. That's good," Jack said.

Jack and Annie moved slowly to the chairs and sat down. Leaning forward, Jack rested his forearms on his thighs while still holding Annie's hands.

"We're going to have to do it a little differently than we did when you were little," Jack began. "I want you to lean back in the chair and close your eyes."

Annie complied with his instructions.

"Now Annie, I want you to take a deep breath. Good. Picture the energy field in your mind Annie," Jack said. Owen and Ianto notice Jack was rubbing his thumbs gently in a rhythmic pattern over the top of Annie's hands. They had seen him do that when he and Annie had their first meeting in his office.

"Think of the energy field as a light bulb with a dimmer switch. The light's too bright and you need to turn it down using the switch. Picture turning the dimmer switch; nice and slow."

Annie concentrated and slowly the energy started to fade. "That's good Annie," Jack said. "Just keep going." Jack looked over at Owen who was checking the readings. He gave Jack the thumbs up sign.

"You're doing great. Focus and feel the energy field fade out. When you think you've done it, open your eyes," Jack said.

The moment the energy field disappeared Annie opened her eyes. She looked around to double check then she beamed at Jack. "We did it!" she said and she gave Jack a big hug.

"No, you did it, Annie," replied Jack as he hugged her back.

Ianto and Owen broke into smiles. "That's what we like to see, a happy ending," Ianto said.

"Well done the both of you," Tosh chimed in through the intercom.

"Your heart rate and breathing are returning to normal," Owen said, "but your heartbeats are still out of synch and I have no idea why."

"My life has more subplots than all of my novels put together," Annie said as she slumped down in her chair.

Jack reached out and gently lifted her chin up so he could make eye contact with Annie. "Hey, we made some progress tonight."

"Actually, this morning," Ianto said looking at his watch and stifling a yawn.

"Either way," Jack continued, "we made progress. You consciously willed the energy field away, so you have the ability to control it. That's a good sign."

Annie gave him a little smile. "Yeah, you're right, but I wish it was more."

Right now we'll take any progress we can get," Owen said as he walked up to Annie. "Your breathing and heart rate are back to normal. How do you feel?" He asked as he flicked a penlight over both her eyes.

"Just a little tired," Annie replied. Looking at Owen and Ianto she said, "You two look all done in; I'm not giving you a chance to get your beauty sleep."

"Well, I think it's safe to say the show's over for now," Owen said "so if you don't mind I'm going to crash in the spare room because I'm too damn tired to go home."

Annie got up and hugged Owen. "Thanks Owen. Get some sleep."

"Will do; see you all in a few hours," replied Owen as he walked out of the room.

"Tosh," Jack said as he stood up, "go home and get some sleep."

"Are you sure Jack?" Tosh asked through the intercom.

"Yeah, we'll regroup in a few hours after everyone's had some sleep. I'll stay with Annie and keep an eye on her."

"Alright then; night everyone," Tosh said. They heard Tosh shut down her workstation and head toward the exit.

Jack turned to Ianto and said, "That goes for you too Ianto; go home and get some sleep."

"Actually, I think I'll just crash on the couch in the boardroom. It's quite comfortable. If you need me you know where to find me."

"Good night Ianto, Annie said as she hugged him. Ianto started to leave the room when Annie added, "Thank you, Ianto – for everything." Without turning around he said quietly, "You're welcome. Good night."

Before Ianto went up to the boardroom he stopped by the weapons locker, pulled his gun out of its holster and locked it away. He was glad he hadn't had to keep his promise to Annie tonight.

************************************************************

**ASLEEP**

A few hours later Gwen almost ran Ianto as she walked in past the rolling cogwheel door. She managed to lean backwards while Ianto step sideways with a tray of coffee to avoid the collision. "Whoa, sorry Ianto," she said as she recovered her balance.

"And good morning to you too," Ianto replied. Turning the tray in her direction he offered her a cup of coffee.

"Ta," Gwen said as she took a mug from the tray. She took a sip and closed her eyes briefly to enjoy the aroma and taste of the coffee. Opening her eyes she smiled at Ianto. "Your coffee is sheer heaven, Ianto. If you want to give me the world's greatest wedding present, please teach Rhys how to make coffee like you do."

Ianto smiled, pleased with the compliment. "I can show him how to make it, but I can't give him my personal touch," he replied.

"I know," Gwen sighed, "but I've had better coffee from a vending machine compared to what Rhys tries to pass off as coffee."

"Oh dear," Ianto replied. "You must really love him to swallow that kind of coffee. I'll see what I can do."

"You are my knight in shining armor Ianto Jones," Gwen said as she kissed him on the cheek."

After looking around the seemingly empty Hub," she asked, "Where is everyone?"

"Late night party; very late," Ianto replied as he started walking with Gwen toward Tosh's work station. "Annie had a solo episode with an energy field. Jack was able to help her focus and turn it off fortunately. When it was under control Jack told us all to get some sleep. Owen's still asleep in the room next to Annie's, Tosh went home and I crashed on the couch in the board room."

"Did Jack stay with Annie?" Gwen asked.

Ianto smiled and said, "Of course; want to see?" He pointed at the monitor focused on Annie's room. Jack was laying on Annie's bed his legs spread apart and his boots off with his back leaning against the wall. A pillow had been placed against his chest and Annie was snuggled against him with his left arm draped over Annie. Both were still sound asleep.

"Oh, how sweet," Gwen said. "They look so cute together."

"Yes they do," murmured Ianto. "I haven't the heart to wake them up. I swear Gwen, if you watch them long enough you can almost see Annie as a little girl. And even in his sleep, you can see Jack tries to protect her."

"Well, that's not surprising, considering she's all the family he's had," Gwen said as she turned to Ianto, "until recently anyway," Gwen added as she winked at Ianto.

Ianto smiled a little. "Yeah, well that's true. I think I'll go wake up Owen; he's not as cute when he's asleep." Ianto picked up the tray and headed off to the room where Owen was sleeping.

************************************************************

**THE DREAM**

The old two-lane highway was familiar; she had been there before. The sky was grey and overcast, but there was no rain. In the distance coming from the west was a 1953 two-door white Chevrolet Bel Air. As it approached she could see a man driving with a woman sitting next to him, but couldn't see their faces.

The left rear tire blew out and the woman passenger screamed as the man struggled to get the car under control. He hit the brakes too hard and the car rolled over and slammed into a telephone pole.

Approaching from the east was a jeep driven by a man in military clothing. Seeing the accident he pulled over, parked the jeep and ran to the crashed car. Smoke and flames were coming from the engine.

The man reached the wreck and checked the driver and woman; both were dead. He was about to walk away when he heard a child crying. Quickly searching the vehicle he found the child, a little girl about one year old. The man was able to free the little girl from the wreck and was rapidly walking away from the crash site when the car blew up, throwing the man and child to the ground. He got up and was checking the child; she had stopped crying and he thought she was dead. "Come on sweetie, don't quit on me now."

The child he would name Annie opened her eyes and gazed at Jack. Instinctively, she reached out her hand and placed it on Jack's chest; somehow she knew she must connect with this human or die. Slowly she felt Jack's heartbeat match hers; she was safe for now.

Annie mentally turned away from the scene in her dream and changed the scene to Cardiff. She found herself standing on the roof of the Millennium Stadium and saw Jack standing with his back to her as he looked out over Cardiff in the pre-dawn light. After walking over to join Jack, Annie said nothing; they both stood there for a moment or two just looking at Cardiff as the sun slowly rose behind them.

"I've never been invited inside someone's dream before," Jack said without turning his head toward Annie. "Did you just want to share the view with me or talk something out?"

"A little of both I suppose," she replied. "I can't figure out why I have dreams of the car crash my parents and I were in; I've had the dream for years and I sense I'm missing some important clue in the dream, something that might explain what I'm going through." Looking at Jack she asked, "Do you ever dream about the crash Jack?"

"Sometimes," Jack said as he turned to look at Annie.

"Is it always the same?"

"Yes," Jack replied. "Why?" he asked Annie although he suspected he already knew the answer.

"Will you please share your dream with me Jack? Perhaps if I see the crash from your point of view, I'll find the clue I keep missing," Annie said.

Jack hesitated. "I don't know Annie," he replied. "There are things I've seen and done that you shouldn't see," he began.

"I understand your concern Jack," Annie said. "But if we both focus on the crash, I believe that will be the only thing I'll see." She held out her hand in a silent plea.

For a moment it seemed Jack would refuse her request and then he took Annie's hand. "Ready?"

Annie nodded and said, "Yes. Focus on your dream and I'll follow." Jack closed his eyes and concentrated. With a sudden lurch Annie was pulled by Jack's mind back to the same highway. But this time she was riding in the Jeep with Jack.

They saw the white Bel Air's tire blow out and witnessed the crash. Jack pulled the Jeep over and parked. Next, there were two Jacks; the dream Jack ran over to the car crash while the other Jack and Annie remained in the Jeep. Annie watched the dream Jack check both of her parents and then his frantic search for the baby. Again the car exploded and she saw dream Jack and the baby thrown to the ground. Dream Jack picked himself and the baby up and she could hear his desperate plea, "Come on sweetie, don't quit on me now."

"Look over there Annie," Jack whispered and pointed to the driver's side of the wreck. A glowing energy field flowed out of the wreck and floated over to the baby and dream Jack. The energy field flowed into the baby and then the baby place her hand on Jack's chest. Both of them could see the energy as it flowed through her hand and into dream Jack. Both the baby and Dream Jack's eyes briefly glowed and then the energy field disappeared.

Jack changed the scene back to the roof of the Millennium Stadium. The sun was shining down on Cardiff and the bay and people were going about their morning errands.

"I wasn't the one that bonded you and me," Annie said. "It was my father."

"The question is why did he do that?" Jack asked.

"What any parent would do I suppose; protect their child," Annie replied. "Perhaps he believed that an additional link was needed because he didn't know you and wanted to make sure I was looked after."

"Maybe or perhaps the bond was meant to bring us together at a later time in your life when he knew this energy field would appear and you would need my help."

Shaking her head Annie said, "No; that makes no sense to me. My father couldn't have known that you would be alive when this event happened and I doubt he knew about Torchwood."

Jack was holding her hand and once again gently rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand. Still looking out over Cardiff Jack asked, "Annie, you trust me right?"

"I trust you with my life Jack," Annie replied. "And I would understand if you've withheld some information from me until the time was right, because you've always done what was best for me," she said as she gave his hand a quick squeeze.

Jack felt a lump in his throat after hearing her words. "That means a lot to me Annie," he whispered.

"I know. I mean look at us; we're in my dream or is it yours? Anyway, neither of us finds our conversation inside this dream weird. We both just accept it."

"Yep," agreed Jack. "I've always thought that you were psychic or at least had the potential."

"And you're psychic, but our powers are stronger when we work together," Annie said. Sniffing the air she asked, "Do you smell coffee? I swear I smell coffee."

Jack inhaled deeply and smiled. "Ianto's brewed up a batch of my favorite blend; we'll have to wake up if we want to drink it though. But first, tell me what else you can sense, before we wake up."

Annie closed her eyes. "Ianto's already awakened Owen and Owen is not too happy about it. And Gwen's here in the Hub, but no Tosh yet."

"And another one of your abilities blossoms; so, time to wake up; have some coffee and some breakfast. Then I have something to show you in private before I share it with the team. OK?"

"OK Jack," Annie replied.

************************************************************

**IANTO AND COFFEE **

Ianto walked into Annie's room quietly; he planned to just place the coffee tray on the table and leave.

"If you love me, you'll bring the coffee over here, Ianto," Jack said as he opened his eyes.

"Sorry Jack didn't mean to wake you," Ianto replied as he handed a mug to Jack.

"Ianto and Gwen think we look cute when we sleep together Jack," Annie said as she opened her eyes. Looking up at Ianto she noticed he'd showered, shaved and changed into a dark blue suite with a red tie. "Lord, look how gorgeous he is after a long night. It's practically indecent."

"Yes he is, wonderful way to start the day, coffee and Ianto," Jack quipped between sips of coffee.

"I try to please," Ianto replied as he felt himself blushing, although he was chuffed at the compliments.

Annie groaned as she tried to straighten out her legs. "Ow, I'm stiff all over this morning. Would one of you lovely men help me get up?"

"Hang on a sec," Jack said as he handed his mug back to Ianto. "First things first, on a scale of one to ten what's your pain level?"

"It's about an eight this morning, unfortunately," Annie replied.

"OK, let's take it slow. Can you drape your legs over my right leg?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, I can manage that," Annie confirmed and moved her legs until they were over Jack's right leg.

"Good. Now I'll just remove the pillow, but you continue to lean against my chest. I'm going to sit up and swing my leg off the bed and then you should be able to put your feet on the floor. On three, one, two, three," Jack swung out and both Annie and he had their feet on the floor. Jack was still sitting behind Annie.

Ianto put the tray down on the table and put out both his hands to Annie. "May I assist you miss?" he asked.

"Yes, please," she replied and grasped both of Ianto's hands. "On three, one, two, three," Annie held on to Ianto's hands as she stood up and Ianto counter balanced by simply leaning backwards a bit.

Jack stood up and stretched and asked Annie how she was fairing. "Do you need Owen to check you out?"

"No; it's just one of my bad days and actually it's the first one in a long time. I think drinking some of Ianto's coffee and having a hot shower should take care of things. Thanks Jack thanks Ianto." Annie accepted a mug from Ianto and cradled it in her hands to warm them up first before sipping her coffee and walking slowly around her room to start working the stiffness out of her joints.

"Tell you what, after you've had a shower, we'll all go over to the café for a full English breakfast," Jack said as he picked up his shoes.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Annie replied as she nodded.

Ianto picked up the coffee tray and he and Jack left Annie's room heading upstairs to Jack's office.

"Jack, how did Annie know Gwen and I had talked about how you two looked while sleeping? She couldn't have heard us," Ianto said as they walked up to Jack's office.

"New ability: telepathy. We just found out about it during the night," Jack replied as he finished his coffee. He proceeded to strip out of his rumpled clothes and put on fresh clothes. "She must have picked up your thoughts as you entered her room. So, you think we looked cute together, huh?"

"Yes. You two looked cute asleep in an uncle-niece, family kind of way," Ianto replied. Is she able to read our thoughts as easily as Tosh did when she wore that necklace?"

Jack considered the question as he buttoned up his shirt and pulled up his braces. "No, I don't think so, but she might need some training on controlling her telepathy. Besides, her ability isn't as strong with you and the rest of the team as it is with me."

"How strong is it with you?" Ianto asked.

"She was able to pull me into her dream last night," Jack began, "Not only did we have a conscious conversation in her dream, but we even traveled into a dream of mine trying to find some answers about the car crash I rescued her from. To top it all off, while still in the dream we both smelled your coffee, Annie knew that you had awakened Owen and that Gwen was in the Hub, but Tosh wasn't."

Ianto was impressed. "I always thought you were somewhat telepathic, but why is it so strong with Annie?"

"She's known me since she was a toddler, we went through a lot together when she was growing up, Annie still has a child-like trust in me," Jack said as he sat down and pulled on his shoes. "Anyone of those or a combination of those reasons could explain the unique ability we seem to have with each other. Jack stood up as he said, "I just hope she still trusts me as much after I explain something she's not aware of yet."

"What do you have to explain to her?" Ianto asked.

Before Jack could reply to Ianto he heard '_Jack, I'm ready to go when you are_.' Annie's voice was as clear as if she had been standing next to Jack.

"Jack?"

"Huh? Sorry Ianto; I'll explain it all to you and the team after I've told Annie about it. Right now she's ready for some breakfast. Shall we go and get the others?"

"Sure," Ianto said. As they walked downstairs Jack connected with Annie's mind. '_Meet us on the main level Annie.'_

************************************************************

**FRY UP AND PLOT**

Tosh joined the rest of them at the café after receiving a call from Gwen. A full English breakfast or "fry up" was delivered to their table.

"I'd forgotten how huge a fry up is," said Annie staring at the eggs, sausages, bacon, mushrooms, black pudding, sautéed potatoes, and tomatoes. "Anyone care to help me out?" she asked as she held her plate out invitingly.

"I'm willing to take the black pudding if you don't mind," replied Ianto.

"Fair exchange for the lovely coffee this morning," Annie said as Ianto transferred the pudding from her plate to his.

Jack helped out by taking a sausage and some potatoes while Tosh took some mushrooms.

"How's your pain level now Annie?" Owen asked as he took bacon from her plate.

"It's about a four now; Ianto's coffee and the hot shower made a world of difference," she replied before tucking into her breakfast.

Gwen asked, "How's the novel coming along?"

"It's pretty much completed. I just have to smooth out a few transitions," Annie replied. "This food is good. Someone learned at their mother's knee I suspect."

"The chef here never disappoints," Jack agreed as he finished off his eggs and tomatoes. "Is your novel the Highlander or the RAF series?" he asked.

"The RAF series this time," Annie responded.

Gwen asked, "What's the plotline Annie?"

"Oh, it's a little different this time. It involves a RAF pilot of course along with a blond girl, a barrage balloon, a Glen Miller song, and a Chula spaceship," Annie said with a straight face.

Jack had been drinking water when Annie talked about the plotline and had started choking and sputtering. Ianto patted him on the back.

"Are you OK, Jack?" Ianto asked.

Jack coughed a couple of times before saying, "I'm fine, I'm fine." Looking over at Annie he raised his eyebrows and asked, "You're joking, right?"

Annie tried to keep a straight face but couldn't. She started laughing. "Oh course I'm joking Jack, but you should see the look on your face!"

"Excuse me," Owen interjected, "but what is a Chula spaceship doing in a World War II love story?"

"Nothing," Jack replied.

"Would never happen," Annie agreed. Jack and Annie looked at each other and they both burst out laughing.

Ianto commented, "I supposed if I asked for an explanation you'd both tell me it's a long story."

"Yep, pretty much," Jack replied.

"That's what I thought," Ianto responded. "Good thing I didn't ask; nice to see you two laughing at any rate."

The rest the meal was dotted with small conversations and a joke or two by Owen and Jack.

************************************************************

**THE BEGINNING**

While the rest of the team went to their work stations to continue various projects, Jack took Annie to his office and closed the blinds. He knew it was time to tell Annie the rest of the case that was her life, but he was afraid he might lose her trust.

Taking a deep breath, he went not to the safe or his desk, but to a plain wall in his office. Using his time agent wrist band he activated a mechanism that slid part of the wall apart to reveal a hidden safe. There was no combination lock or keyhole in the safe door just three indentations in the door. Jack placed three fingers of his right hand in the indentations and waited. There was a slight humming noise as the security device scan Jack's DNA, followed by a click as the safe unlocked.

Jack pulled an archive box from the safe, walked over to his desk and placed the box on his desk. He sat down and looked at Annie.

She gave him a reassuring smile. "Time for the rest of the story, Jack," Annie asked.

"Yes it's time," Jack agreed. "Some of it you already know: The car crash, all your surgeries, how I arranged for your adoption. Now it's time for the beginning of the story," he said as he took the top off of the box and pulled out a file.

"Your story began here in Cardiff in 1954 as part of a Torchwood investigation. We recorded unusually high rift activity just outside of Cardiff; that in itself was outside the norm. When we went to investigate, our instruments indicated an energy field the size of a human moving away from the original location of the rift activity, which we tracked until we lost the signal.

After setting up some monitors in the area we returned to Torchwood. There was no signal for two weeks. Finally the signal reappeared and I was sent to investigate. I tracked the signal to an old barn on the outskirts of Cardiff. Waiting out in the surrounding woods, I finally caught a glimpse of the target." Jack pulled a photo out of the file and placed it in front of Annie. The black and white photo showed a glowing man standing in the open doorway of the barn.

Annie asked Jack "Was he my father?"

"Yes," Jack replied. "Annie, Torchwood's mission at the time was to protect the UK from alien life forms and all off world aliens were considered hostile by default. My task was to locate, observe and capture this alien. If I couldn't capture it I had to terminate it."

"But you didn't," Annie said.

Jack looked uncomfortable as he said, "I would have if it came down to it. I tried to capture him first. He didn't always have his energy field on; he could turn it on and off at will. So I waited for a time when his energy field was off and tried to grab him from behind and use chloroform to knock him out."

There was a faraway look in Jack's eyes as he remembered the event. "He was almost within reach when a young woman walked into the barn and spotted me. She yelled, 'Look out!' to the alien and he turned around and caught me in the chest with a tremendous energy bolt."

"My father killed you?" Annie asked.

Jack looked at Annie and said, "Your father was just defending himself, but yes, he killed me. I heard the woman yelling at your father not to hurt me before everything went black. When I came back to life I startled both your father and the young woman. The alien was preparing to throw another energy bolt and I was pulling out my gun. The woman stepped between us and shouted 'Stop this nonsense right now!' We both hesitated, but I guess she didn't like the look in our eyes, so she said, 'Enough and I bloody well mean it!'

We both lowered our weapons. Then the woman asked me, 'who are you?'

Captain Jack Harkness and who the hell are you?

'I'm Annie Watts and he's Frank. That's not his real name, but I call him Frank because I can't pronounce his real name.'

So you two have already met. Sorry I've got to break up a budding romance, but he has to come with me.

'Why? It's a free country isn't it? He hasn't hurt anyone, except you obviously, but you tried to attack him didn't you?'

Yeah, tell that to the next guy he blasts; they won't be so lucky. Look, Miss Watts,

'Annie, call me Annie,' she said.

Look Annie, your Frank isn't from Earth he's from another planet and he's dangerous and it's my job as an agent for Torchwood, to protect Earth from the likes of him.

'I don't care if you're the Queen of England; you're not taking him anywhere. He was almost dead when I found him two weeks ago. I wanted to take him to the A and E, but he refused, so I've been taking care of him and he was starting to feel better only a couple of days ago.'

Probably the reason why we lost track of him in the first place," Jack said.

"This woman was my mother, right?" Jack's Annie asked.

"She sure was," Jack said as he smiled at the memory. "Annie Elizabeth Watts. Your mom was a beautiful young woman. Here, see for yourself," he said as he put another photo on his desk. Annie gazed at the face in the photo. She could see she resembled her mother.

"You have your mother's eyes, her stubbornness and you're both very persuasive when you want to be," Jack said.

"She was persuasive enough to convince you to let my father go," Annie said. Jack nodded.

"She convinced me she could help Frank control his energy field and to assimilate into society. I agreed on the condition that they both leave the UK. As long as they were out of the UK, Torchwood wouldn't pursue them. I helped smuggle them to Spain and from there they immigrated to the US. I figured I'd never see them again."

"So your presence in Nevada at the time of the crash was a coincidence?" Annie asked.

"The world's a lot smaller than either of us thought. I was actually there on other business," he replied. "When I saw Frank and Annie in the car dead it just broke my heart. And then I heard you crying and found you in the back seat of the car. You were apparently thrown out of your mother's arms from the impact."

Jack got out of his chair and paced around the room. "I had to be involved in your life Annie, because I didn't know if you had been adopted by Annie and Frank or if they were in fact your biological parents. You showed no signs of an energy field and all the tests for your surgeries indicated you were human.I thought we had been lucky and there was nothing to worry about; I was wrong Annie and I'm so sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry about, Jack? You saved my life, helped me recover from the accident, even paid for my education," Annie responded.

Jack sat back down and placed his right hand over Annie's left hand. "Don't you see Annie? If I had stayed in touch with your parents I might have learned what planet Frank was from and understood what to expect when you grew up. Instead we have to figure everything out from scratch and I'm not sure we'll learn enough to help you fully control your abilities."

Annie leaned backed in her chair as the implications of Jack's statement sank in. Looking back at Jack she changed the subject by asking, "Do you know the background of Annie's family?"

"Yes I have her background information in this box." Jack said.

Annie lowered her eyes breaking eye contact with Jack. "If you don't mind I'd like some time by myself to go through the box alone."

"Of course, you can use my office for as long as you want," Jack responded.

"Thanks Jack."

Jack got up and walked out of his office and quietly closed the door behind him.

************************************************************

**ARE WE FAMILY?**

It had been an hour since Ianto saw Jack leave his office to give Annie some time to herself.

He eventually found Jack in the greenhouse area of the Hub. He was sitting on a stool staring off into the distance. Ianto sat down beside him and without looking at him said, "So you told her everything." Jack nodded his head but didn't say anything.

Ianto clasped Jack's left hand. "Are you OK?" he asked.

"I don't know yet; it depends on Annie," Jack replied.

Ianto turned Jack's head and kissed him. "Annie's not a little girl anymore, Jack. I think she's wiser than you know," Ianto whispered as he nodded his head in the direction of the greenhouse door.

Jack turned and looked over at the door; Annie was standing there waiting.

"I'll just make a fresh pot of coffee, if you'll excuse me," Ianto said. As he walked by Annie, Ianto briefly placed his hand on her shoulder and gave her a quick smile. Annie reached up and gave Ianto's hand a squeeze, and then he was gone from the room.

Annie walked over and sat down where Ianto had been. Jack turned and faced Annie.

"I could feel your anguish even when I was in your office and you were in here," Annie began, "You're the bravest man I know Jack, but you fear losing the trust and love of those you hold close to your heart. It's more painful to you than coming back from the dead." She said this as an observation. Annie stood up and wandered around the greenhouse gazing at the various alien plants before she continued talking.

"You said you had to be involved in my life because you didn't know if I had been adopted by Annie and Frank or if they were my biological parents. By the time I was 10 years old you must have decided I was no threat to anyone; why did you stay involved in my life?" She was still gazing at the plants, her heart waiting for an answer.

Jack replied, "The simple truth? By the time I decided you were no threat you were and are my niece in every way that matters."

Annie released the breath she was holding, turned and walked over to Jack.

"My mother had no family left, she had lost them all in the war and she was raised in an orphanage. Then she found my father and fell in love. You made a tough choice and ignored the Torchwood regulations and let her and my father escape."

Annie stopped in front of Jack leaning on her cane for support. Looking Jack straight in the eye she said, "My mother had a husband and a child even though it was only for a brief time because of your choice." Placing her hand over Jack's for emphasis Annie said, "I exist; we are a family by choice as a result of your action.

If you had stayed in touch with them they might have been found out by authorities in the US. Regardless of what happens to me from this moment forward Jack, you made the right choice. Thank you," Annie said as she hugged Jack. Hugging her back, Jack couldn't find words to express his relief that Annie still trusted and loved him.

A moment later Ianto was walking down to the main floor of the Hub blowing his nose. Looking up from his workstation Owen inquired, "You're not getting sick are you?"

"No, just some allergies," Ianto responded as he headed off to make some coffee with a smile on his face.

************************************************************

**CASE UPDATE AND A REQUEST**

Around 3:00 PM Jack called a meeting in the boardroom with the entire team.

"This morning I told Annie the background on her biological parents. I told her first, because it's her life. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Jack said to his team. He gave his team the information he had already shared with Annie earlier in the day.

Everyone listened without interrupting Jack. Afterwards Owen said, "It's good to know about Annie's parents, but it doesn't really give us additional clues about how Annie can control her energy field."

"True," Tosh said, "but we now know that her father could turn the energy field on and off at will. Theoretically Annie should be capable of doing the same."

"Let's recap," Gwen said. "Annie's got the ability to create energy balls or bolts as weapons, generates energy fields around herself and others and now she is telepathic. Perhaps we're going about this the wrong way."

"What do you suggest we try?" asked Ianto.

"Look, we've been trying to get Annie to turn these abilities off, right? But we're no closer to understanding how she does it. Why don't we have Annie try to generate the energy field and bolts in a controlled environment and see if we can learn more that way?"

"Don't see why not," Owen said, "it's definitely worth a shot."

"What if I'm able to generate the field and then I can't turn it off?" Annie asked.

"Annie, you've consciously turned it off on two occasions already," Jack said. "You can do it again." Looking at Tosh and Owen Jack asked, "What do we need to prepare for this experiment?"

"I recommend we do the testing down in the firing range," Owen said. "That way Annie could generate an energy bolt and throw it at the targets to dissipate the energy."

"Good idea Owen," Jack said. "How much time do you two need to set up everything?"

Owen looked at Tosh. "I don't know, the rest of the day? What do you think, Tosh?"

Tosh nodded and said to Jack, "We could have it set up by tomorrow morning."

"What about your telepathy, Annie?" Gwen asked. "Are you hearing all of our thoughts in your head right now or are you able to control it?"

"So far it's not bad," Annie replied. "I think I read Ianto's thoughts this morning simply because my ability was already switched on from talking to Jack in my dream. Ianto came in as I was waking up and both of our defenses were down and I read his thoughts by accident. Sorry Ianto," she said.

"No problem," Ianto responded. "I'm just glad my thoughts at that moment were fairly general." He blushed as he grinned.

Annie nodded in agreement. "Me too; there are some things I'd really rather not know."

"Annie, how did you fair this morning when we at the café?" Tosh asked. "Did you hear the crowd's thoughts?"

"Not really; it was more like a buzzing in the background," Annie said as she thought about it. "In fact, once we were involved in our breakfast and conversations, the sound dropped to almost nothing."

Tosh gave a little sigh of relief. "That's good. Hearing all those voices at once can be overwhelming; I know, unfortunately," she added.

"So," Gwen began, "can you read my thoughts right now?"

"No, just sitting here in the same room doesn't mean I can read anyone's thoughts without making a conscious effort." Annie looked around the room at everyone. "I take it you've all had a bad experience with telepathy in the past?"

Tosh looked like she was going to answer when Jack cut in saying, "Yes we did, but it was the result of an alien artifact, which we destroyed." Jack touched Annie's mind, '_I'll tell you about it later.'_

"OK," Annie said aloud in response to both Jack's vocal and mental comments. "Look, other than the incident with Ianto this morning, I haven't accidentally or purposefully read anyone thoughts. Jack's the only one I can communicate with telepathically with little effort." Her answer seemed to make everyone visibly relax.

"Any other questions?" Jack asked as he looked around the room. His team shook their heads. "Good; Owen, Tosh let us know what time the test is scheduled. Dismissed."

Everyone left the room except Jack and Annie. "How long do you think all this will take before I'm able to move on with my life Jack?"

"I can't put a time frame on it, Annie. It could take days, weeks or months."

"But this is pulling Torchwood away from other investigations. You can't continue to put all your resources into my case, Jack. Torchwood is here to protect Cardiff and the world," Annie said.

"Remember your story began here in Cardiff with Torchwood," Jack replied. "By helping you we're helping Cardiff. Besides things are relatively quiet at the moment; if things start happening we'll redeploy our resources as necessary. Let me worry about Cardiff. You focus on adapting to and controlling your abilities, OK?"

Annie leaned back in her chair. "You're right, but I've got business to conduct."

"Can you manage it via phone or e-mail?"

"Most of it, but some things I have to do in person," Annie said. "I need to meet with my lawyer. Is it OK for him to meet with me here?"

"Not a good idea Annie," Jack replied. "Although most of the locals know about Torchwood, we still try to keep a low profile."

"Look Jack, my lawyer is Mr. Thomas Scott. Check him out; you'll find he works for UNIT on an as-needed basis and knows about Torchwood. It's one of the reasons I chose him as my lawyer," Annie said.

"Leave it to you to plan for the unexpected," Jack replied with a smile. "I'll check him out and if his credentials are in order then you two can meet here. Otherwise, we'll have to meet with him outside of Torchwood; deal?" Jack asked.

"It's a deal Jack. Here's all of his contact information," Annie said as she handed the information to Jack.


	3. The Tests

__

_FYI_

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with title in bold uppercase letters.

***********************************************

**THE PHONE CALL**

Jack called UNIT and placed a request for verification of Mr. Thomas Scott's employment and security clearance level that very afternoon. Later around 10:00 p.m. his office phone rang. The caller ID confirmed it was from UNIT.

"You guys took your sweet time calling me back; I expect better from you considering all the times Torchwood 3 has saved your collective asses," Jack complained.

"No need to be such a drama queen Captain Jack Harkness," a female voice said.

Visions of her leapt to his mind: When he came back to life after traveling through the Vortex clinging to the outside of the Tardis she was leaning over him; helping him hold the door closed against the Futurekind on Malcassario; her escaping from the Valiant using his Time Agency wristband; laughing in the Master's face when she was returned to the Valiant for execution, then explaining how one word (_Doctor_) would save the earth. Being held by her as he broke down and wept after the Master was defeated; her standing at a rail in the Roald Dahl Plass just before he returned to Torchwood.

Martha Jones. Jack was briefly overwhelmed by mixed emotions upon hearing that lovely voice again. He cleared his throat and forced lightness into his voice. "Martha? Dr. Martha Jones! Suddenly I hear the voice of a nightingale. What are you doing calling from UNIT?"

"I work for UNIT Jack; I'm part of the medical team here in London," Martha said. "Walking down the hallway this evening I ran into one of our liaison officers and he was muttering 'Bloody Torchwood; they think we're at their beck and call.'"

Jack laughed. "Let me guess, that would be Sergeant Robert Simmons, am I right?"

"Lieutenant Simmons now; how'd you know that? No, wait; let me guess you dated him, right?"

"Yeah years ago; we met at a security conference, had a few drinks, a few laughs, a tumble or two between the sheets,"

"Oi! Too much information Captain Jack," Martha said as she interrupted him. They both laughed.

"It's great to hear your voice Martha. How are you?" he asked.

There was a definite pause before she responded. "I'm doing pretty good; you know, moving on," Martha said.

"Good, I'm glad to hear it," Jack said.

"How are things is Cardiff, how's your team?" Martha asked.

"Fine, watching the rift and saving the world," he replied.

"Great. Listen, I told Lieutenant Simmons I'd call bloody Torchwood for him and relay the information. Mr. Thomas Scott does work for UNIT, has for several years. He has top secret clearance and knows about the Doctor and about Torchwood 3 in Cardiff. Still has a small private practice as well and all of his clients are legit. Is that what you needed to know Jack?"

"That's it, Martha," Jack replied.

"I'll e-mail his file and photo to you Jack. It's been great talking with you," Martha said.

"Thanks Martha; great talking to you too." Jack relaxed and realized he really did enjoy talking with Martha. "Hey, if you're ever in Cardiff stop by and I'll give you the grand tour," Jack said.

"Will do, take care Jack; bye," Martha said and then she rang off.

************************************************************

**THE TESTS**

At 10:00 a.m. the next morning Jack was walking with Annie down to the firing range. "After the experiment this morning, if you're not too tired, you can arrange for Mr. Scott to meet you here in Torchwood," Jack said.

"Hopefully I'll feel up to meeting with him after this morning," Annie said.

"Nervous?" Jack asked.

"Nervous, no; actually I'm a little scared Jack. So many things could go wrong, I could hurt someone," Annie replied. Her grip on Jack's arm tightened.

Jack stopped walking and turned to Annie placing both his hands on her shoulders. "Remember scared it a good thing. It means you're aware of your surroundings and you'll be careful."

Jack and Annie resumed walking down the hallway to the firing range. "I've seen how Owen and Tosh have set up the firing range; there are protective barriers and safety equipment galore. Plus the minute you or I think things are going wrong we'll stop the experiment."

Turning the corner they arrived at the firing range. "Good morning Annie, Jack," Owen said. He was wearing what looked like a white jumpsuit. Glancing at the PDA in his hand he said, "Your blood pressure is up a bit this morning Annie; not unexpected. I'd be a little nervous too under these circumstances. Come take a look at how we've set things up," Owen said as he walked ahead of them and entered the firing range.

Normally the firing range simply consisted of a table at one end containing the safety goggles, hearing protection head gear, guns and ammunition. The other end of the firing range held the targets which could be stationary or move on a track and a sand butt to stop the bullets.

"As you can see we've set up a clear, bullet-proof wall between our control area and the test area. In addition there's fine metal netting applied to the wall that is grounded so any energy hits will be discharged harmlessly into the ground. Our equipment has additional shielding against any energy surges and magnetic fields.

All of us including you, Annie, will be wearing these ever so stylish jumpsuits made of the same material used to protect NASCAR and Formula one race car drivers as well as protective goggles and headsets. Tosh and I will be in the control area and Jack will be in the testing area with you. The lovely Ianto and Gwen who don't have to wear these stylish jumpsuits will observe and video record the tests from the main floor of the Hub.

We've altered the target area by putting up sand bags for you to hit and we've doubled the size of the sand butt to absorb the energy. Do you have any questions?" Owen asked.

"No, it looks like you've covered all the bases," Annie replied.

"Good, in that case if you'll step behind the curtain over there Tosh will help you into your jumpsuit while Jack changes out here."

"Over here Annie," Tosh said and she led Annie to the curtained-off area. Tosh was already dressed in a jumpsuit. Annie stepped behind the curtain, removed her outer garments and sat down on a chair. Tosh brought her a jumpsuit. "Your suite is a little different from ours," she said. "There are sensors inside your suite that will help us analyze the flow of energy and your vital signs as well. We'll remove the wrist monitor for now and put it back on after the tests."

After Tosh helped her get into the jumpsuit Annie said, "I feel like an astronaut." Tosh and Annie looked at each other in their jumpsuits and giggled.

"Sorry to break up your fun ladies, but it's time to get down to business," Jack said as Tosh and Annie joined him and Owen in the control area. Jack had donned his jumpsuit; he still managed to look handsome. "Ready Annie?" asked Jack as he offered her his arm to hold on to.

"Ready as I'll ever be," she said holding on to Jack's arm. They walked into the test area and Owen closed the door behind them.

"Can you hear me Jack?" asked Owen over the intercom.

"Loud and clear," Jack replied.

"Ianto and Gwen are you ready?" Tosh asked.

Ianto and Gwen appeared on her monitor. "Everything's ready up here," Gwen confirmed.

"Alright then, boys and girls," Owen said, "start recording. Annie, Jack will guide you through the tests we've set up. The moment you or Jack feel something is wrong, just say the word and we'll stop. Whenever you're ready go ahead and start."

"Annie," Jack began, "we'll start with you generating an energy field while I'm holding your hands. Take your time. Remember your emotions at the time the energy fields appeared. Once you've generated it maintain the field for a few minutes and then turn it off."

"OK Jack; here goes," Annie replied. She closed her eyes and thought about how she felt when she fell asleep with Jack in the board room. '_I felt safe and happy with Uncle Jack. I wanted to hold on to the moment forever._'

Annie felt a tingling and warmth spread throughout her body. It traveled up through her hands and wrapped around Jack's body as well. She opened her eyes and saw that they were both enveloped with her energy field.

"That's it Annie," Jack said as he grinned at her. "Now hold it for a few minutes. Owen, are you guys getting all the readings you need?"

"We've just about got the lot; Annie hold on just a little bit more," Owen said as he glanced at his monitors. "Tosh, you have the readings you need?"

"My tests are done in 3, 2, 1; OK we're good," Tosh said.

"Annie, go ahead and turn off your energy field at your own pace," Owen said.

"Just like you did it the other night, Annie," Jack said encouraging her.

She thought of the energy field as a light with a dimmer switch, slowly turning the dimmer down until the field was gone. Opening her eyes she saw Jack was grinning from ear to ear.

"That's my girl," Jack said as he hugged her. "Do you feel OK?"

"I feel fine," Annie replied. "I really do feel fine. What's next?"

"Next you generate the field again, but alone," Jack said. "We want to see if the readings are different from when you're in contact with another person."

"Right," Annie said. She successfully generated the field alone, held it for a few minutes and then turned it off.

"Well done Annie," Owen said. "Let's take a five minute break. I want to get another baseline reading with you at rest before we go on to the next test."

Jack brought a chair over to Annie. "Take a load off kid," he said. He squatted next to her chair. "Still scared?" asked Jack.

"Not as bad as before," Annie admitted, "but those were the easy tests."

"Yeah, those were the easy tests. The next tests we want you to try are generating an energy ball. After which we want you to create the energy ball again and hit one of the targets at the end of the firing range."

Annie looked toward the various stacks of sand bags. Looking back at Jack she said, "When I threw that bolt in Los Angeles, I passed out for five minutes Jack. Is that really a good idea?"

Grasping her hand he replied, "I'll be right behind you; if you fall I will catch you."

Annie blinked. "You do realize you just used song lyrics to reassure me?"

"No I didn't," Jack replied. "I'll have you know that Cyndi Lauper stole those lyrics from me," he said in earnest.

They looked at each other for a moment. Annie punched Jack in the arm as she said, "Bullshit!" and they laughed. "You hit like a girl," he said.

"If she hits like a girl, how come you're rubbing your arm?" Tosh asked as she walked up to them.

"Just trying to build up her confidence," Jack replied.

Tosh made a slight humph noise in her throat. "Annie we're ready to start the next tests if you are."

Annie and stood up and said, "Yes, I'm ready. Let's do this."

Tosh removed the chair and closed the door behind her.

"OK people let's go," Owen said over the intercom. "We're recording, so Annie you can start when you want."

Jack was standing behind Annie. "I'm right here Annie. Go ahead."

Annie nodded, closed her eyes again and remembered the incident with the Weevil. Placing her feet slightly apart she put her hands out in front of her like she was holding a basketball. Jack saw the ball of energy form between her hands.

"You've got it Annie. Hold on to it," Jack said as he looked over at Owen and Tosh. First Owen looked up and nodded and then Tosh did the same.

Turning back to Annie Jack said, "We've got the readings Annie; go ahead and turn the energy ball off."

Annie, who hadn't opened her eyes, focused and turned off the energy ball off slowly. She could feel the energy dissipate.

"Annie, you OK?" Jack asked. Annie could feel Jack standing close behind her. "Do you feel faint?"

Opening her eyes, Annie said, "I'm surprised; I don't feel faint at all. Perhaps it's because I had better control over turning the energy ball on and off."

"She could be right," Owen said over the intercom. "Her vitals are fine; let's go for the energy bolt."

"I'm game," Annie said looking over her shoulder at Jack.

"You're sure?" Jack asked.

"I'm sure," Annie said. Jack briefly squeezed her shoulder and then stood behind her – just in case.

Annie turned and focused on one of the sand bags stacks. Keeping her eyes open this time, she positioned herself as she had for the energy ball. '_All I have to do is focus and pull my energy together_,' she thought to herself.

Everyone saw Annie form another ball of energy, pull the ball back towards her body slightly and then she threw the ball toward one of the sand bag stacks. On impact the energy ball didn't just knock the stack over but actually busted a couple of the sand bags apart sending sand into the air.

No one moved; Annie looked as if she had frozen in place when she threw the ball. As the sand settled she blinked a couple of times and looked at her hands before letting her arms fall to her side and turned to find Jack right beside her placing his arm around her waist.

He looked worried. "Are you alright?"

"I'm a little shaky, but I don't feel faint," Annie replied.

"Let's get you out of here," he said as guided her towards the door in the protective wall.

They were met by Owen, who brought a chair over. "Sit down for a moment Annie, so we can get another baseline." Annie set down; while Owen ran some quick checks. Jack took another look at the sand bags and started to worry.

"Annie, your vital signs look normal; any dizziness or headaches?"

Owen asked.

"No, just a little shaky," Annie replied. "Did you get all the data you needed?"

Nodding his head Owen replied, "We got tons of data. The rest of today will be spent analyzing it. As your doctor I recommend you go have a good lunch, take a stroll outside and then rest."

"Sounds lovely; I'll just go change into my street clothes; back in a moment,"

Jack watched Annie walk over behind the curtain. While he changed out of the jumpsuit he asked Owen, "What's your gut reaction to what we just saw?"

Owen looked at Jack and said, "Even without analyzing the data, I'd say Annie's energy abilities are getting stronger."

Yeah they are," Jack agreed with a pensive look on his face.

"Jack, I know you're frustrated; we all are," Owen said quietly. "We still have one extraordinary thing in our favor."

"What do we have in our favor, Owen?" Jack asked desperate to hear some positive news.

"We still have Annie," Owen replied. "Yes her body is changing, but her mind and spirit haven't changed. As long as we can communicate with Annie, we've got a shot at helping her."

"Thanks Owen," Jack said. "You're right we still have Annie."

"Oi what's does a girl have to do around here to get someone to take her to lunch?" Annie inquired as she walked towards Owen and Jack.

"All she has to do is ask," Jack replied as he smiled at Annie. "What would you like for lunch?"

"Hmm, a place with a nice atmosphere and a great curry," Annie replied.

"I know just the place," Jack said to Annie. "I'll check in with you and Tosh later," he said to Owen.

"Bye Owen, bye Tosh," Annie said as she and Jack headed out the door.

************************************************************

**THE LUNCH**

"We can drive over to the curry house Annie if your pain level is too high," Jack said as they were exiting through the cogwheel door.

"My pain level's about a 3 or 4 right now, so I'd rather walk," Annie replied.

"As you wish," Jack replied holding the front door of the tourist office open for her to walk through.

While walking over to Mermaid Quay, Annie pulled out her mobile phone and called her lawyer's private line. Hearing his voice mail click in Annie said, "Hi Thomas, it's Annie. Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner but something's come up. I can't meet you in your office; would you be able to meet with me in Cardiff? Call me back as soon as you can. Thanks. Bye-bye."

"You didn't tell him much," Jack commented as they approached the curry house.

"Well, I don't think it would have been a good idea to leave a message saying 'Hi Thomas, it's Annie. Listen I've started generating energy fields and throwing energy bolts so I'm in Torchwood 3 getting all sorts of tests done. Hopefully I won't blow anything up. Cheers,' do you?"

Smiling Jack said, "You're right; not the kind of message one should leave as a voice mail. Let's go eat."

A few minutes later Jack and Annie were enjoying lunch at the curry house. The sun was out and just a few white clouds dotted the sky so they decided to dine in the patio area. Annie had chosen Tandoori lamb chops with Pilau rice and Nan bread while Jack had selected Tandooried king prawn pan fried in a spicy massala sauce with Aloo Chat and garlic mushrooms. Although they appeared to be eating in silence, Annie and Jack were talking.

'_You're right you know_,' Annie thought.

'_Right about what_?' Jack thought back.

'_My abilities are getting stronger; I can feel it_,' Annie replied. '_Is it time to panic_?'

Shaking his head Jack thought '_No; Owen pointed out to me you're still you in mind and spirit even though you're body is changing. He said as long as we can communicate to each other we're still in the game_.'

'_Bright fellow that Owen_,' Annie thought.

'_One of the reason why I hired him_,' Jack thought back.

Annie's phone started ringing. Picking it up she saw her lawyer's number displayed. "Thomas is calling back," she said as she opened her mobile phone. "Hi Thomas, thanks for calling back so quickly." Annie listened for a moment. "No, I'm not ill Thomas; a situation has arisen that I'm dealing with and the people I need assistance from are located in Cardiff," she replied. Annie looked at Jack while she listened to Thomas again. Finally she responded, "Yes the people are from Torchwood. No, they're not hurting me they're helping me. No, I'm not being held against my will Thomas," she said.

Jack could hear Thomas' voice rising and Jack put his hand out in a give me the phone gesture.

"Hang on a moment Thomas, I want you to talk to my friend," Annie said before handing the mobile to Jack.

"Who is this?" Jack heard Thomas say. "Thomas, this is Captain Jack Harkness," Jack replied. "Miss Halliday is not being held against her will. In fact, we're at Mermaid Quay finishing a lovely lunch together."

"Oh God, not you," Thomas responded. "I've heard about you and your Torchwood Captain Jack and I have half a mind to call in UNIT to get Annie out of your clutches. If you harm one hair on her head,"

"Thomas, I would never harm Annie," Jack interrupted. "She's family to me."

"I know for a fact that she doesn't have any family left since her husband and son died," Thomas replied in a raised voice. It was loud enough that Annie could hear him.

'_Tell him I'm your godmother_,' Annie thought to Jack. Jack raised his eyebrows at her, but took her suggestion.

"You're right Thomas, but I'm not claiming to be a blood relative; Annie is my godmother," Jack said.

"Your godmother; Annie is your godmother? She never mentioned it to me," Thomas replied.

"Well she doesn't like to brag; besides outside of Torchwood and UNIT, who would believe her? The point is I consider her family and I'll do whatever is necessary to help her and protect her," Jack said. His last statement seemed to reassure Thomas.

"OK, I believe you, Captain Jack. Tell Annie I'll be out there by this evening. We'll discuss this further in person," Thomas replied.

"I look forward to meeting you. We'll see you this evening then; goodbye," Jack said and then terminated the call.

"I think he's sweet on you," Jack teased as he handed the mobile back to Annie.

"No, we're just very close friends," Annie replied as she put her mobile away. "Shall we head back?" she asked.

"Whatever you say Godmother," Jack said with a straight face.


	4. Memories, Shocks & Chocolates

**AN**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

One section titled _**Take a Break**_ is **rated M** for a sexual encounter.

************************************************************

**Memories**

Annie tried to rest after returning from lunch, but could only manage to nap on and off for a couple of hours. She decided to get up and start preparing for her meeting with her lawyer.

She was reviewing paperwork and preparing her book for the publisher, when Ianto came in with a cup of tea for her.

"Thanks Ianto," Annie said.

"You're welcome," Ianto replied. He was starting to leave when Annie asked, "What did you think of my performance during the tests this morning?"

Ianto thought about it before replying, "It was impressive."

"Were you concerned about what I was able to do?" she asked.

"Not really," Ianto replied. "You're getting better at it, because you didn't faint, but I didn't see anything that caused me to be concerned. I'm taking my cue from Jack; if he starts to worry, then I'll be concerned."

"Do you feel you can still keep your promise to me?" she asked.

"Yes," was Ianto immediate response, "but I hope there will be no need to keep my promise." Ianto hesitated, but didn't leave; instead he said, "Can I ask a favor of you?"

"Certainly," Annie replied.

Ianto pulled up chair near Annie's desk and sat down. "OK, here goes; you've known Jack all your life and I've only known him for a short time. I know you have blocked reading our minds, but would it be possible for you to share some memories of Jack from when you were a little girl, please?"

Looking into Ianto's eyes Annie said, "You're not talking about me telling you stories or showing you a photo album are you? You want me to actually share a memory by touching your mind with mine, am I right?"

Ianto nodded and said, "Yes. It's hard to explain why, but I thought if you could share a memory with me, perhaps I could understand Jack a little better somehow. Now that I've said it, it sounds daft even to me."

"No, it's not daft, but touching our minds together might not be a good idea."

Jack was up in his office going over a couple of reports.

'_Jack, can you hear me_?' Annie thought.

Jack closed his eyes. '_Yes I can hear you Annie; what's up?_' he replied. Annie quickly relayed what Ianto had requested.

'_Do you think it's safe?_' she asked.

'_Should be' _Jack answered.

'_How do I link his mind with mine?'_

'_I'll step you through the process and just as a precaution, I'll stay linked to your mind, but don't let Ianto know,_' Jack replied. He quickly told her how to proceed.

'OK Jack.' Annie opened her eyes and smiled at Ianto. "Alright Ianto, let's give it a go. If I think anything is going wrong I'll break off contact OK?"

"Yes; that sounds good to me," Ianto replied. "How do we go about it?"

Turning her chair so she faced Ianto Annie said, "Hold my hands and close your eyes. Good. Now take a couple of slow breaths and relax. You have to trust me in order for this to work." '_Ready Jack?_' Annie asked.

'_Ready. Go ahead Annie,_' Jack replied.

'_Ianto, can you hear my thoughts?_' Annie asked.

"Yes, yes I can," Ianto said aloud.

'_Good. Now I'm going to start at a place we both know,_' she said.

Ianto felt himself pulled away from Annie's room. Suddenly he could see the Tourist information office. He couldn't see himself or Annie but he could hear her in his mind.

'_Ianto, I'm going to show you just a few memories, but they're very special to me, very personal. I'm sharing them with you because I trust you. Here we go,_' Annie said in her thoughts.

The Tourist office blurred and was replaced by a hospital room. It was a hospital in the past judging by the bed and equipment. A little girl was lying in her bed and it was nighttime. She was wide awake and she looked like she had been crying. There was a soft knock on the door and it the swung open to reveal Jack. He was attired in an RAF uniform from the 1950s, his hair much shorter and parted on the side.

'Hi sweetie,' Jack whispered.

'Uncle Jack!' Annie shouted happily.

'Finger to lips,' Jack whispered back as he quietly closed the door. Annie immediately put her finger to her lips imitating Jack.

Jack came over and carefully sat down on Annie's bed. 'We don't want to alert the night nurse.' Jack gave Annie a gentle hug. 'How are you doing Annie?'

'I'm scared Uncle Jack, I don't want to have another surgery,' Annie replied. Ianto could see her lower lip trembling. Jack gently touched her lower lip to quiet her.

'Remember what I told you, it's OK to be scared. I know you hate the surgeries and you're tired of being in pain, but someday you'll be able to get rid of the wheelchair and walk on your own two feet. That's what you want to do right?' Annie nodded her head.

'Good. Now I have found a secret weapon that helps only little girls like you.'

Jack reached in the box he had brought and pulled out a Teddy Bear. The Teddy Bear was attired with a long gray coat like the kind Jack wore in modern Cardiff and a little leather wrist band like Jack's.

'What kind of Teddy Bear is he Uncle Jack?' Annie asked as Jack handed it to her.

'He's like me,' Jack replied. 'He's a time agent.'

'He travels through time like you did?'

'Yep,' Jack replied, 'but he needs a name and I think that's a job for you.'

Annie though about it said, 'I'll name him Frank Harkness. Thank you Uncle Jack.'

'You're welcome Annie.' Jack replied. 'Did you decide what kind of chocolate you wanted after your surgery?'

'I'd like to have some of the fudge my mother makes,' Annie replied.

'Good choice; hopefully you'll let me have a piece or two.'

'Sure Uncle Jack,' Annie said.

The door opened up and a nurse looked into the room. Spotting Jack, she walked into the room, and stood at the foot of the bed with her hands on her hips and a stern look on her face.

'Captain Harkness, how many times have I warned you not to sneak into the ward after hours? It's against the rules and Annie needs to get some sleep!'

'Please don't make Uncle Jack leave Nurse Trent,' Annie pleaded. 'I can't sleep and I need Uncle Jack to stay with me.'

Nurse Trent's face softened upon hearing Annie pleading. She moved to Annie's side and placed her hand on Annie's head. 'Annie, you know your Uncle Jack can't stay here all night; it's the rule,'

Jack stood up and asked, 'Could I have a word with you Nurse Trent?' They moved to the foot of the bed.

'Look, Nurse Trent,' Jack began 'what's your first name?'

'Cheryl,' she replied.

'Lovely name,' Jack smiled his dazzling smile and took one of her hands in his. 'Cheryl, this is Annie's fifth surgery and she's scared. You've got a whole floor full of children to look after; won't you just let me take care of Annie tonight? No one will know but us,' he said as he held her hand and gazed into her eyes.

Cheryl held his gaze for a moment before giving end. 'Alright Captain, but don't let anyone see you,' she said and then left the room.

Jack went back to Annie and lay down beside her on the bed. Annie leaned against Jack's chest and placed her hand over his heart.

'Please tell me a story Uncle Jack,' she said.

Smiling at her Jack said, 'Sure thing sweetie. Did I ever tell you how I met my Doctor?' Annie shook her head. 'Well, it was the height of the London Blitz and I was in this Chula spaceship near Big Bend in London. That's when I saw this gorgeous lady with blond hair hanging from a barrage balloon rope. She lost her grip and started to fall and I caught her using the tractor beam on the spaceship. . .'

The hospital scene blurred and faded away as Ianto saw the young Annie fall asleep.

Another scene appeared. It was a sunny day in a park. Ianto saw a man and woman laying out a picnic. He heard a shriek of laughter as Jack appeared running through some trees with a slightly older Annie riding on his shoulders. She wore heavy metal braces on both legs.

'Come on you two; lunch is ready,' the woman said.

'Coming Mom,' Annie said between giggles. Jack stopped, lifted Annie off his shoulders and gently placed her on the blanket.

'Was Uncle Jack giving you a horse back ride?' she asked.

'No, we were in a spaceship,' Annie said.

'Jack, you put such silly ideas in her head,' Mary Halliday said.

'Trust me she comes up with most of these ideas herself,' Jack said while still trying to catch his breath. He plopped down beside Annie and gratefully accepted some lemonade from Mary.

'He's right Mary,' Ed said as he handed a plate laden with a large sandwich, coleslaw and watermelon to Jack. 'Annie's read all of the books we've given her and now she's reading her way through the public library.'

'Take it from me Mary, Annie is as brilliant as H.G. Wells and she'll probably make an excellent living as a writer,' Jack said. Annie beamed at the compliment.

'You really think so Uncle Jack?' Annie asked.

"Yep, you'll be fantastic," he replied. Annie gave him the biggest smile before bursting into giggles again. Ianto felt himself pulled away from the park.

Next he saw a small airfield with a WW I airplane sitting on the tarmac. Jack and Ed, Annie's dad, were walking over to airplane with Annie. She no longer wore the leg braces but was using two canes to help her walk. It was obvious she was having difficulty walking but the determined look on her face kept Jack and Ed from offering a helping hand. They settled for walking close beside her in case she stumbled. Finally they reached the plane.

"I did it!" she shouted.

"Annie, I'm so proud of you," her dad said.

"So I can ride in the airplane now?" Annie asked as she looked from her dad over to Jack.

"One airplane ride coming up," Jack said.

Jack and Ed helped her into the rear passenger seat and then Jack got into the pilot's seat. They both put on goggles and helmets. A mechanic helped Jack start the plane and they took off. Jack banked the plane and pointed out some landmarks to Annie. He put the plane through its paces: steep climbs, barrel rolls, even flying upside down. Through it all Annie was smiling and laughing. The ride ended with a smooth landing. After Jack helped her out of the plane he pinned wings to Annie's jacket and Ed took a picture of them.

Once again the scene blurred away and was replaced by a scene of someone's graduation day.

'Say cheese!' a man said.

'Cheese!' replied Annie and her parents. Annie was wearing a graduation robe and cap and holding her high school diploma. She looked beautiful.

The man handed the camera back to Ed.

'Thanks,' Ed said. Turning to his family, 'Are we ready to go to the restaurant?' he asked.

'We can't go yet Dad, Uncle Jack's not here yet,' Annie replied.

'Honey, Uncle Jack said he didn't know if he could make it to your graduation,' her mom said.

'No, he'll be here; I know it,' Annie replied as she looked through the crowd. 'There he is, Uncle Jack over here!'

Jack was making his way through the crowd. When he reached Annie he gave her a big hug and twirled her around. 'There's the lady of the hour! Mary, Ed congratulations you have a graduate at last.'

'Yes we do indeed,' Ed said in agreement. 'Now that the whole family is here we need to take some more pictures.' A few minutes were spent taking a few more shots.

'Jack you're joining us for dinner, right?' Mary asked.

'Absolutely; you two go ahead and walk over to the car. I'd like to talk to Annie for a few minutes.'

Mary and Ed headed out to the parking lot, leaving Jack and Annie alone.

'Hey I almost forgot I have a present for you,' Jack said as he pulled a small box from his pocket. Opening the box Annie found a beautiful necklace inside. It was a gold chain with two interlinked gold stars; each star had a diamond at its center.

'It's beautiful Uncle Jack; thank you,' Annie said as Jack put the necklace around her neck.

'Something to remember me by,' Jack replied.

'Remember you by?' asked Annie.

'Yep,' Jack said as he and Annie strolled toward the car. 'Annie you're all grown up now; you're going to college where you'll be brilliant and make new friends. After that you'll become a successful writer and have a life of your own. It's time for me to stand back and let you fly.'

'Will I ever see you again?' Annie said with tears in her eyes.

'Hey, hey no need for tears,' Jack said as he handed her his handkerchief. 'We'll see each other from time to time, talk on the phone. But it's time for you to discover the world and let the world discover you; having an uncle around constantly would cramp your life style.

But, if you should ever need me do not hesitate to contact me, day or night, alright?

'Alright Uncle Jack,' Annie said.

Jack grinned. 'Now let's go join your mom and dad; I'm starving!'

One last time the scene blurred and went to black.

'_We're home Ianto; open your eyes,_' Annie said.

Ianto opened his eyes to find Annie looking at him. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"Yes, I think so; thank you Annie," Ianto replied. He saw Annie was still wearing the necklace that Jack had given her for graduation. In fact she always wore that necklace he realized.

"Can I have my hands back now?" Annie asked.

"Sorry; of course. I hadn't even realized we were still holding hands."

"It's OK Ianto. I was kind of caught up in the moment too," Annie replied. Annie gave him a quick hug. "See you later."

"Right; bye," Ianto said as he left her room.

'_Jack_?' Annie thought.

'_I'm here,_' Jack replied.

'_Is Ianto an empath?_'

'_It would appear he is, which would explain how he knows when I need him_,' Jack thought back.

'_Did I do OK?_' she asked.

'_You were fantastic,_' Jack replied.

'_Love you,_' Annie said.

'_Love you too,_' Jack replied as they broke off contact.

There was a knock at Jack's door. He smiled, because he knew it was Ianto.

************************************************************

**The Lawyer**

Around 8:00 PM that evening Thomas Scott entered the tourist office. Mr. Scott was a slender man of medium height with big green eyes, glasses and red hair. He was wearing a dark navy blue suite.

"Good evening," Ianto said.

"Good evening," Mr. Scott replied, "My name is Thomas Scott," he said as he handed Ianto his business card. "I believe Captain Harkness is expecting me."

"May I see your security ID please" Ianto asked. Mr. Scott handed his UNIT ID badge to Ianto.

"Thank you," Ianto said as he studied the ID carefully. "Now if you would please place your right hand on the scanner," he said as he pushed a button which revealed a scanner built into the counter.

Mr. Scott complied and a minute later Ianto received confirmation from the UNIT database the man standing in front of him was indeed Mr. Thomas Scott.

"Thank you Mr. Scott," Ianto said as he returned Mr. Scott's badge back to him. Ianto activated his com. "Jack, Mr. Scott is here," he said. After hearing Jack's replied Ianto said, "Will do Jack. Mr. Scott, please follow me." He escorted Mr. Scott up to the boardroom.

When they entered the boardroom Jack was standing at the head of the table.

"Mr. Thomas Scott this is," Ianto began to say.

Jack finished the introduction, "Captain Jack Harkness pleasure to meet you."

Mr. Scott shook Jack hand as he said, "I hope I can say the same to you; where is Annie?" he inquired while putting his briefcase on the table.

"I'm right here Thomas," Annie said entering the room just as Ianto was leaving it. She walked over to Thomas and gave him a quick hug. "It's good to see you, thanks for meeting me here."

Thomas held Annie at arms length and looked at her. He appeared to be checking to make sure she had all her arms and legs. "Are you alright Annie? I never expected to hear your name and Torchwood mentioned in the same sentence."

"See, I'm still full of surprises," Annie replied. We've got a lot of things we need to tell you. Let's sit down."

Jack sat at the head of the table with Thomas and Annie to his right. Thomas made a point of sitting between Jack and Annie.

'_He's very protective,_' Jack thought to Annie.

'_Yes he is; like I said we're very good friends,_' Annie replied.

Thomas got right to the point. "Annie what's going on and why did you come to Torchwood for help when you could have come to me or to Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart at UNIT?" he asked.

"I probably would have, but the Doctor told me specifically to get help from Torchwood and my godson," Annie replied.

"The Doctor? When did you meet the Doctor?" Thomas asked.

Annie told Thomas about the incident on the California subway minus the details of her and Jack's family history.

Thomas paled a little bit after Annie finished telling him the background story. Fortunately, Ianto came back into the board room with coffee and tea at that moment.

"I thought Mr. Scott might need some tea," he said as he placed the tray on the table.

"Thanks Ianto; your timing as always is perfect," Jack said.

"I try my best, sir," Ianto replied and left the room.

Annie poured Thomas some tea and handed it to him. "Thanks," he murmured as accepted it. Thomas took a few sips. Jack had poured Annie and himself coffee.

'_I think he's in shock,_' Jack thought to Annie.

'_No just shaken up a bit; give him a couple minutes before we proceed. I'll let you explain the rest. Don't forget you're my godson, not my uncle. Did you tell the rest of the team about the godson scenario?_' Annie asked.

'_Yep, we're all on the same page, Godmother,_' Jack replied. Annie rolled her eyes at Jack. He didn't need telepathy to know what she meant by that gesture.

Thomas put down his cup and looked at Annie. "The Doctor told you to come to Torchwood and yet Torchwood is not known for friendly behavior toward off-world aliens. Why did he think you would be safe here?"

"You're talking about the old Torchwood regime," Jack replied. Thomas turned his attention toward Jack. "Old regime?" Thomas asked.

"Ten or fifteen years ago, Torchwood would have locked Annie up and not even tried to help her. When I took over I threw away that attitude. Now we try to understand the aliens and try to return them to their own world if possible. The only aliens we hold are the ones who are a danger to humans.

Putting aside the fact that Annie's my godmother, we have the following in her favor:

She came to us voluntarily seeking our help

She agreed to stay here at Torchwood for observation and a battery of tests

She wants to understand what is happening to her and wants to control her abilities

Even when she has episodes with her abilities we've always been able to communicate with her and help her control them

The whole time she's been here regardless of what's happening to her body her mind and spirit are intact; she's still Annie

She's harmed no one

The Doctor believes we can help her

We've already run several tests which are being analyzed as we speak."

"I can see your point, Captain Harkness," Thomas commented.

"That's good Thomas," Jack replied. "Now let's clear up one more point," Jack said as he stood up, placed his hands on the table and leaned toward Thomas a little bit. "All information about Annie does not leave Torchwood. You may have faith in UNIT, but I'm not taking any chances when it comes to family. Is that clear?"

"Jack, Thomas is not the enemy," Annie said.

"It's alright Annie," Thomas said as he patted her arm. Thomas also stood up; though not as tall as Jack, Thomas was able to make his presence felt. "You don't need to worry about me; I owe my life to Annie.

We were at a cocktail party to help launch one of her books. I wasn't feeling too well, but I had promised to attend so I did. Anyway, we were standing together talking with her publisher when I felt clammy and short of breath. The next thing I knew it felt like someone had hit me in the chest with a sledgehammer and I passed out. Full blown heart attack apparently.

No one at the party knew CPR except Annie. She yelled at someone to call 999 and get an ambulance. Then she spent the next 15 minutes giving me CPR until the ambulance arrived. They treated me at the scene and put me in the ambulance. Annie rode in the ambulance with me and stayed at the hospital until she knew I was out of danger. So I think it's safe to say we're on the same team. Wouldn't you agree Captain Harkness?" Thomas asked.

Jack smiled and put out his hand again. "Call me Jack."

Thomas shook Jack's hand and said, "Call me Thomas, Jack."

"If you two are done with your male bonding I'd like to go over the reports," Annie said.

"Reports?" asked Jack.

"Reports on my holdings, properties, contracts with my publishers; very boring stuff," Annie replied.

"I have a stack of reports on my desk to review, too. They won't get read and signed by themselves as Ianto is always reminding me. If you need anything just say the word," Jack said. He gave Annie a kiss on the forehead and left the boardroom.

Thomas sat down again, pulled his briefcase in front of him and opened it up. "I feel better now that I've seen you and talked with Jack. Over the years I've heard he can be like a bull in a china shop, frequently clashing with UNIT officials and law enforcement. There's no doubt in my mind that he'll do whatever he can to help you," Thomas said while pulling out the paperwork.

"What do you think of me now that you know I'm half human and half alien?" Annie asked. She said it in a casual way, but she was concerned about Thomas' reaction to the news.

Looking at her Thomas said, "It doesn't matter; mind you it will take some getting use to, and sometimes I may be frightened by what's happening to you, but I'm in this for the long haul Annie." Annie smiled at Thomas.

"Right, shall we get on with the reports?" he asked.

************************************************************

**Just One Touch**

Annie and Thomas spent two hours going over reports. She got up to stretch her legs and walk around the room.

"One last item Annie," Thomas said. "The renovations to the castle are coming along nicely; let me show you." He pulled his laptop out of the briefcase, turned it on and opened a slide show presentation. Annie came and stood behind Thomas to see the screen better.

"As you can see, the roof has been repaired and the outer wall rebuilt. We've cleared out all the fireplaces and installed handrails on the staircases."

"What about the solar panels?"

"They were integrated into the roof," Thomas replied as he skipped to the slide showing the solar panels. "The power-generating windmills have been installed on the hill partially hidden by the rock formation. Oh, and the gardens are coming along nicely." He showed her several slides of the gardens.

"They are lovely," Annie replied. "What about the dungeons?"

"They've been cleared of all junk and debris; had to evict a few creatures, but nothing dramatic. Electricity, ventilation and plumbing have been installed. The safety inspector came in and checked everything out; he didn't find any problems and signed off on the paperwork."

Annie smiled. "You've done a marvelous job Thomas working with the architect and contractors, keeping track of everything. Thank you."

"You're welcome Annie," Thomas replied. "Actually, it's been a nice break from my usual routine."

"Then you won't mind expanding the project," Annie commented.

"I wouldn't mind continuing the project, but I thought your plans covered everything you wanted done," Thomas replied.

"True, until today; take a look at the plans I've drawn up," Annie said as she handed Thomas a thumb drive.

Thomas plugged the thumb drive into his laptop and opened the file. He studied the plans for several minutes while Annie walked around the room. "We'd have to make extensive changes, but it certainly could be done. May I ask why you want to make these change – Annie you're glowing!" Thomas exclaimed.

Annie had been so engrossed in her discussion with Thomas she hadn't noticed the growing energy field. Thomas walked around the table and approached her.

"Are you alright, should I get Jack?" he asked. Without thinking he reached out his hand and touched her.

Jack was in his office and Ianto was just coming into the Hub when they heard Annie scream, 'Thomas - No!' inside their heads. They both bolted towards the board room, where they discovered Thomas unconscious on the floor and Annie backed up against the far wall with her energy field glowing brightly.

"Owen we have a medical emergency in the board room," Ianto said quietly into his com.

"I hadn't noticed my energy field. Thomas saw it and came over to me concerned. Before I could warn him he reached out and came into contact with the field, fell down and hit his head," Annie said. She started to cry.

Owen came running in with his medical kit and started examining Thomas. "Did he come in contact with you Annie?" he asked.

"Yes; and he had a heart attack a few years ago."

"He's got a pulse." Owen opened Thomas' shirt, placed electrodes to his chest and hooked him up to a heart monitor. Taking out a stethoscope he listened to Thomas's chest.

"Annie, Annie you need to calm down; it was an accident. Let me help you," Jack said to her.

"No. Not until I know he's alright," Annie replied.

"Let's get him down to the infirmary," Owen said as Tosh and Gwen brought in a stretcher. Jack and Ianto placed Thomas on the stretcher and carried him down to the infirmary and transferred him to the autopsy table.

"Tosh and Gwen can help me with Thomas; Jack and Ianto you need to go help Annie," Owen said. He was already hooking Thomas up to another monitor.

Jack and Ianto went back up to the board room. Annie was still leaning against the wall.

"Is he alright?" she asked.

"He's breathing on his own and his heartbeat is strong. Owen's looking after him," Jack replied.

"It was an accident Annie; not your fault," Ianto said.

"In my mind I understand that, but it doesn't make me feel any better," Annie replied.

"Let us help you Annie," Jack said. "You called Ianto and I; so let us help you."

Jack extended his hand toward Annie; Ianto did the same.

Annie nodded her head. She grasped Jack's hand first and then Ianto's. They both felt an initial shock like plunging into frigid water.

"We've got you Annie. Take some deep breaths and turn the energy off like you did before," Jack said.

After several minutes Annie managed to turn the field off. Ianto and Jack lead her over to the couch and they all sat down. Jack held her while she cried. Ianto gave her his handkerchief and continued to hold her other hand.

After her breathing slowed downed Annie was able to say, "We were just talking about renovations to the castle in Scotland; neither of us aware of the energy field until Thomas looked up from his laptop. He reached out and touched me without thinking. Shit, I thought I'd killed him."

"But you didn't Annie. He's going to be OK," Jack said.

"Would you please check on him," Annie asked.

Ianto activated his com. "Owen, how's Thomas doing?"

"He's conscious," Owen replied. "Has a bump on the back of his head, but he'll be fine. We are having a little difficulty keeping him calm because he's worried about Annie. If she's up to it, have her come down and see Thomas. It'll probably do both of them a world of good."

"Annie, Thomas is awake and asking about you. Are you up to seeing him now?" Ianto asked.

She nodded her head. "Yes I am," Annie replied.

They went down to the infirmary. When they walked into the room they heard Thomas saying, "I'm fine, I just want to see Annie."

"She's on her way; you need to stay right where you are so I can monitor you," Owen replied.

"I'm here Thomas," Annie said.

Owen turned to her and said, "Good; will you please tell Thomas to stay put? His vitals are fine including his heart but, because he bumped his head and was unconscious briefly he has to stay here tonight for observation just to be on the safe side."

Annie walked up to the gurney, but didn't touch Thomas. "Owen's right Thomas, you need to stay put. I'm so sorry I hurt you."

Thomas saw that Annie had been crying; her eyes and nose were red. In fact she looked on the verge of tears again. He reached out and touched her arm. "It was my own damn fault; I should have known touching your energy field might shock me. I'll stay put and let Owen monitor me tonight. But tomorrow I have to go back; there's a lot to organize for the additional renovations we've drawn up," he said.

"So we're still best friends?" Annie asked.

Thomas smiled. "Silly girl of course we are; you can't get rid of me that easily. I mean what's a little shock between friends?"

Annie laughed a little. "Good. Get some sleep Thomas," she said as she kissed him on the cheek.

"You too; goodnight," Thomas said.

"Right, enough with the mushy stuff everyone out," Owen commanded. "Thomas, be sure to keep that ice pack on the bump at the back of your head. It's the only pain killer you're going to get tonight." He followed Jack, Ianto and Annie out into the hallway.

Owen handed Annie a pill. "I want you to take this before you go to bed. It's a mild sedative to help you sleep. You're traumatized by the incident as much as Thomas was and you need to rest. Make sure she takes it Jack."

"I will Owen," Jack replied.

They walked up to the main floor of the Hub. Ianto headed off in the direction of coffee nook and Annie went up to the greenhouse. Tosh and Gwen looked up from their stations as Jack approached them. "We thought we'd hang around awhile Jack in case we're needed," Gwen said.

"Thank you ladies, but the excitement is over for the night," Jack replied. "Owen is staying to keep an eye on Thomas tonight. Ianto and I will take turns to give him some breaks. Go home so you're ready for tomorrow."

"What's happening tomorrow?" Tosh asked.

Jack smiled at her. "Don't know, so you've got to be ready," he replied.

"Come on Tosh," Gwen said mockingly "we know when we're not wanted." She got up from her work station.

"Right," agreed Tosh standing up and getting her purse. "Jack, there's been a slight increase in rift activity. I sent you the report. You or Ianto should check the readings a few times during the night."

"Will do Tosh, thanks," Jack replied. "Thank you both for helping out this evening too I appreciate it."

"No problem," Gwen replied. "We feel like Annie is part of the family now. Just wish we could do more to help her."

"You're doing everything possible," Jack said. "We just have to take things as they come."

"And we will," Gwen replied. Gwen and Tosh said their good nights and left through the cogwheel door.

************************************************************

**Comfort Food**

Jack walked up to the greenhouse. He found Annie sitting in a chair with her eyes closed. Pulling up a chair he sat down beside her. "You've had a very rough time today," he said.

"So has Thomas," Annie replied opening her eyes. "He's an innocent bystander. At least you and your team went into this with open eyes, but Thomas didn't understand the full impact of the situation."

"True, but he's going to be OK and he fully understands the situation now," Jack replied. "Judging from his concern for you and what he said to you in the infirmary I'd say he's very fond of you and nothing can change that."

"Thank God for small favors," Annie replied. She had deep dark circles under her eyes and her face was pale.

A knock on the door drew their attention. Ianto came in bearing a covered tray. "Sorry to interrupt," he said as he laid it down on a table. "Annie's spirit needs a little help and I believe I have the solution." Lifting the cover off the tray he said, "Godiva chocolate, Cadbury chocolate, fudge brownies, chocolate chip cookies, M&Ms and hot chocolate."

Ianto was rewarded with a smile from Annie. "You remembered; thank you Ianto. I can't possibly eat all of this."

"He knows that," Jack said smiling at Ianto. "The size of the display is just to get you to smile."

"And I was successful," Ianto replied.

"Yeah you're a regular Willy Wonka, Candy Man," Jack said with a grin.

Ianto raised one eyebrow. "Careful sir or you'll end up with just snosberries."

Jack chuckled and even Annie smiled a little.

The three of them chatted as they sampled the various chocolates. Jack used the opportunity to make sure Annie took the sedative Owen had given her. After a while Jack suggested that Ianto walk Annie to her room while he takes chocolate samples down to Owen.

As Annie and Ianto slowly made their way down to her room he asked her a question. "I can understand why you reached out to Jack when Thomas went down; I was a little surprised you reached out to me as well. Why did you call me?"

"I guess because we had linked minds before, but mainly because you're close to Jack so in my mind you've become family," Annie replied.

They had arrived at her room just as she made the statement. Ianto was surprised but pleased by her explanation. "Oh, Right then that makes sense," he managed to say. "Good night Annie."

"Good night Ianto," she replied. Annie turned and hugged Ianto and he hugged her back. They just stood there for a moment before she let him go and Annie went into her room.

************************************************************

**Status**

Jack walked into the infirmary. The lighting was down to minimum so Thomas could rest. After allowing his eyes to adjust Jack saw Thomas was sleeping in a folding bed Owen had set up. The heart monitor was beeping to his steady heart beat. Over in the corner Owen was monitoring Thomas's vital signs. Jack carried the tray over to Owen.

"Compliments of Ianto," he said softly laying the tray on a counter.

Owen stood up and came over to the tray. "Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate; who had a party?" he asked. They both spoke softly so they wouldn't wake Thomas up.

"Ianto remembered that Annie used to get any chocolate she wanted after having surgery,"

"Or anything in involving a needle, right I forgot about your deal with Annie when she was little," Owen said as he chose items from the tray. He took a bite out of a brownie and chewed. "Did the tray of chocolate work?"

Jack nodded. "Yeah it lifted her spirit; Ianto even got her to smile a bit."

"Good. Did she take the sedative?" Owen asked. Jack nodded. "Well between that and the chocolate, she should be just fine in the morning."

Jack looked over at Thomas sleeping. "How's Thomas doing?"

"His vital signs are normal. I'll have to wake him a few times tonight because he has a slight concussion. Do you think we can trust Thomas?" Owen asked.

Jack looked over at Thomas again. "Annie trusts him and my gut says he's OK. You?"

"Well mind you I only met him after he was shocked and banged his head on the floor, but when he came to the first thing out of his mouth was, 'Where's Annie? Is she alright?' so I think he's OK too." Owen replied.

"Do you need a break now?" Jack asked.

"Are you kidding me, after eating all this chocolate?" Owen joked as he polished off another brownie. "Check back with me in an hour or so."

"OK," Jack said. He picked up the tray and quietly left the room.

************************************************************

**Take a Break**

Jack and Ianto took turns watching Thomas a few times throughout the night to allow Owen to get some sleep. One time when it was Ianto's turn Jack found Ianto not dozing on the couch in the boardroom but dozing in a chair in Annie's room. His chair was close enough to Annie's bed Ianto had reached out and was holding Annie's hand. '_What a beautiful sight_,' Jack thought to himself and he stood there a moment to watch his lover protecting his niece. He woke Ianto by gently touching his shoulder. Ianto opened his eyes and realized where he was. Jack and Ianto stepped outside into the hallway.

"Sorry, Jack; I just meant to check on Annie. I only sat down for a moment," Ianto said softly.

"You don't have to make excuses, Ianto," Jack replied. "I appreciate you checking on Annie. Sure you're up to relieving Owen for an hour or so?"

"Yeah, no problem," Ianto replied, "I asked Annie earlier why she reached out to me as well as you when Thomas was injured. She said it was because she considers me family," he said looking back at Annie sleeping soundly. Ianto quietly closed the door to Annie's room.

Jack smiled at the pleased look on Ianto's face. "Annie knew when she saw us together at the café the first time; she said I seemed so relaxed and happy." Looking at Ianto Jack explained, "She said it was because of you and she's right."

He kissed Ianto who deepened the kiss opening his mouth letting their tongues intertwine. Ianto moved Jack against the hallway wall and closed the space between them until only their clothing separated them. They'd really had no time alone since they had started working on Annie's case. For several minutes they stood there kissing only breaking contact long enough to breathe. Jack's breath caught in his throat when he felt Ianto unbutton his slacks and slide his hand into Jack's pants and stroke him. He moaned and pulled his mouth away from Ianto's.

"There's no time for this; we need to give Owen a break," Jack whispered moaning again as Ianto continued to stroke him. Ianto's other hand slid up underneath Jack's shirt and pinched his nipple.

"Owen can wait a little longer, we need a break, I need you," Ianto replied. He stopped long enough to pull Jack into a spare room across the hallway and close the door. Knowing they didn't have much time Ianto gently pushed Jack on to the bed, pulled Jack's braces downed and pushed his shirt and tee-shirt up so Jack's torso and most of his chest were revealed. He unbuckled Jack's belt and pulled his pants and boxer shorts down below his knees. Still fully clothed Ianto lay on top of Jack and began kissing him again. He slowly kissed Jack's throat, chest, nipples, and stomach driving Jack mad. Jack saw Ianto stop and stare at him with a wicked look in his blue eyes; Ianto moved lower and licked Jack before covering him with his mouth. Starting slowly, Ianto worked on Jack. He increased his rhythm; all Jack could do was run his fingers through Ianto's hair and hold on for dear life. The pressure continued to build under Ianto's onslaught Jack's breathing becoming faster and shallow. Suddenly Jack found release and let go. Ianto continued until Jack's release was complete then kissed his way back up to Jack's lips and kissed him again. He lay on top of Jack while they both recovered.

Finally catching his breath Jack grinned at Ianto and said, "That was one hell of a break." He felt Ianto smile against his chest. "And you fully dressed while doing it was inspired. I love you Jones Ianto Jones," Jack said as he kissed him again.

Smiling Ianto got up and straightened his suite. Looking at the relaxed and contented Jack still sprawled on the bed he said, "Well, I better go and give Owen his break. Might be a good idea for you to, reassemble yourself and straighten out the bedding before he comes down here."

Jack reached out and grabbed Ianto's hand. "What about you? Hardly seems fair. You didn't get your break."

"I'll get mine in a couple of hours; we both should eat some more brownies to reenergize ourselves, don't you think?" The wicked looked was back in Ianto's blue eyes.

Jack grinned from ear to ear. "Absolutely," he replied as he got up and pulled his clothes back into place and straightened the bedding.

As Ianto opened the door Jack nodded his head towards Annie's room. "If you need me, I'll be keeping the chair warm," Jack said. Ianto smiled, gave a little nod and headed over to the infirmary to relieve Owen while Jack went into Annie's room and sat down in the chair.

Annie looked peaceful in her sleep. Jack pulled the blanket up around her shoulders. Leaning back in the chair he closed his eyes just for a little while.

************************************************************

**Good Morning**

Thomas opened his eyes on an unfamiliar room. It took him a moment to remember where he was and why he was there.

"Good morning Thomas," Annie said. She was sitting in a chair by his bed. "How are you feeling this morning?" she asked.

"Give me a moment to take inventory," Thomas replied. He sat up slowly because he still had a dull headache. Gently touching the back of his head he found a bump which was still tender to touch. "Still sore, but I'll live," he said.

"I'm glad you're going to be OK," Annie said.

Rubbing the back of his neck Thomas asked, "And how are you doing this morning Annie?"

"Fine; Owen gave me a sedative and Ianto brought me a tray of chocolate treats. Mind you, I still feel terrible about what happened last night," she said.

"Don't start down that road again Annie," Thomas chided her. He looked down at the borrowed pajamas he was wearing. "Any idea where my street clothes are?" he asked.

"Right here Thomas," Ianto replied as he entered the room. "I had your suite dry cleaned and found a shirt to replace the one we damaged." He hung the suit on a hook by Thomas' bed. "After you've dressed we have a continental breakfast set up in the board room."

Thomas smiled. "Thank you Ianto; your service rivals any four star hotel."

"You're welcome," Ianto replied and then he left the room.

Owen came in looking tired and rumpled. "Morning Annie, Thomas; how's your head this morning Thomas?" Owen asked as the used a pen light to check Thomas' pupils.

"I still have a slight headache and a tender bump at the back of my head," Thomas replied.

"That's to be expected, but all your vital signs have been nice and steady all night and this morning, so we're going to release you back into the wild. Let's get the leads off you and then you can get dressed," Owen said.

"I'll see you upstairs Thomas after you get dress," Annie said. "Thank you Owen for taking care of Thomas."

"Buy me a drink, no, buy me a bottle of top quality whiskey sometime and we'll call it even," Owen replied as he walked away scratching his head and stretching his back.

Once he was dressed Thomas went up to the board room. His briefcase and laptop were exactly where he left them. He put the laptop and the thumb drive in his briefcase and closed it.

Annie brought Thomas a cup of coffee. A continental breakfast was laid out on one end of the conference table. Thomas selected a croissant and some fruit then went and sat with Annie.

"Where is everyone?" Thomas asked.

"I suspect they're trying to give us some time alone before joining us," Annie replied. "You're sure you feel up to traveling?"

"Fortunately, I came by train, so I won't have to deal with driving," he replied. "I'll call you when I arrive in London and then I'll just take it easy the rest of the day."

"Good plan that's what I'd do. Thomas, when the additional work is started on the castle please send me daily status reports," Annie said.

"Certainly Annie," Thomas replied. "In exchange I want you or Jack to give me a call or send me an e-mail everyday even if there's no progress. Agreed?" Annie nodded her head in agreement. "Good," Thomas said as he patted her arm.

"Owen tells me you're good to go Thomas," Jack said as he entered the board room. He helped himself to coffee and a cinnamon roll. "Did you drive here?"

"No, I took the train," Thomas replied.

"Need a lift to the train station?" Jack asked.

"Yes I'd really appreciate it," Thomas said.

"No problem; meet me in the front office in 10 minutes," Jack replied. He polished off the cinnamon roll and headed downstairs coffee mug in his hand.

************************************************************

**Taking the Train**

Thomas said goodbye to Annie and the rest of the team. He joined Jack in the front office and a few minutes later they were on their way to the train station.

"OK, I give up," Jack said while negotiating the busy traffic.

Thomas was confused. "Sorry, what do you give up on?" he asked.

Jack smiled as he said, "Figuring out what kind of relationship you have with my godmother. Friend or lover? Do I call you Thomas or godThomas?"

Thomas burst out laughing at Jack's question. Jack started laughing too. It took Thomas a couple minutes to stop laughing before he could answer Jack. Finally he said, "No you don't have to call me godThomas. Annie and I aren't lovers, but we're more than just friends. Obviously it all started as just business being her lawyer, but then I started reading her books. I know they're considered historical romances, but she writes so brilliantly! Anyway she started asking me to join her for book signings and parties to launch her books and we went from there. We enjoy each other's company. Annie explained it better than I ever could. What was it now? She called it 'family by choice' – does that explain it?" Thomas asked.

Jack nodded and smiled. "It does indeed; 'family by choice' is what she considers her relationship with me as well." They had arrived at the train station.

Thomas turned to Jack and offered him his hand. "Thanks for helping Annie Jack. Please let me know how things are going and if there's anyway that I can help," he said as they shook hands.

"Will do Thomas; safe trip home," replied Jack. He watched as Thomas walked into the station. Once he was out of sight Jack headed back to the Hub.


	5. Results, Weevils & Bolts

**AN**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

Chapter is rated T.

************************************************************

**Test Results**

Jack walked through the cogwheel door in the Hub. No one was at their work station. "Tosh, Ianto, anybody home?"

Owen appeared at the top of the stairs near the board room. "Up here Jack," he replied.

"Where's Annie?" Jack asked as he went up the stairs two at a time.

"She's out shopping with Gwen," Owen said. "Tosh, Ianto and I were just going over the preliminary results from the tests Annie did on the firing range."

Jack walked into the board room followed by Owen; Jack sat down at the table and nodded to Ianto and Tosh. "Tell me about the test results," he said.

"As you already know Annie's abilities are getting stronger," Owen said as he sat down by Tosh.

"At first we thought the increasing strength was the result of her previous experiences using her abilities," Tosh continued, "but after analyzing the data we discovered Annie wasn't generating all the power herself."

Jack leaned forward. "What other source did she pull power from?" he asked. A sick feeling was forming in Jack's gut; he feared he already knew the answer to his own question.

Owen and Tosh exchanged looks; no one spoke at first. Finally Ianto said, "I'm sorry Jack Annie pulled power directly from the rift." He looked as miserable as Jack felt.

Jack closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath to bring his emotions under control. The others waited for him. Opening his eyes Jack said, "Show me what convinced you that Annie's pulling power from the rift."

"During the first two tests our sensors picked up the power generating from within Annie," Tosh said. "However, during the last two tests our sensors identified two sources for the power; from Annie herself and from the rift. Independently our rift monitoring equipment identified two spikes in activity that match the time of the last two tests and were located directly below the firing range."

"We also have video evidence," Owen added. He punched a couple of keys and Annie and Jack wearing jump suits appeared on the big plasma screen. Owen started the video and provided the narration, "Here are the first two tests. You can see that the energy field emanated from Annie's torso and expanded outward both times. Now watch Annie's feet as she creates the energy balls." They all watched as Annie created the first energy ball. Jack plainly saw the energy fields appear at Annie's torso and her feet; they expanded and merged into one field. The exact same thing happened during the second test. Owen pressed a button and the screen went black.

Jack crossed his arms, tilted his head down and was briefly lost in thought. Without looking up he asked, "Did she do the same thing when she confronted the Weevil?"

"No," Ianto replied. "Tosh checked and found no energy spikes from the rift at the time Annie confronted the Weevil."

"OK," Jack said as he looked up at them. "Why did it happen during the tests and not during the incident with the Weevil?"

"Perhaps she wasn't strong enough to do it before," Tosh said.

"Or she maybe she was closer to the power of the rift when she was down in the firing range," Owen added.

"She was focused," Ianto said quietly.

Jack turned to Ianto. "What did you say?"

"Oh, sorry, I was thinking about the tests down in the firing range," Ianto said.

"What about the tests Ianto?" Jack asked trying to prod Ianto into elaborating.

"Well," Ianto began, "It's was the only time we asked Annie to create the energy field and the energy ball on purpose. She focused on creating the energy ball especially; perhaps she focused so hard that she reached out and accidentally tapped into the rift power."

No one said anything as they considered Ianto's explanation.

"It's possible," Owen said. "Tosh, what do you think?"

"I think Ianto is right; we not only asked Annie to create the energy ball, we asked her to maintain it for a few minutes and then had her throw it at the sand bags. It's possible Annie tried too hard," Tosh said.

"I agree," Jack added. "So next question is do we need to move Annie out of Torchwood to a safe house that's further away from the rift?"

Owen was shaking his head. "No, now that we're aware of the possibility I think Annie needs to stay here so she can learn the difference between generating power through her own body and when she's accidentally tapping into the rift. Odds are she could also tap into other power sources, so she might as well learn how to deal with it now."

"Everyone agreed?" Jack asked. Everyone nodded. "Alright; Owen make sure Gwen is brought up to speed when she gets back and I'll tell Annie."

Owen and Tosh left the room leaving Jack and Ianto alone.

Ianto brought a mug of coffee over to Jack. "Thanks," Jack said as he accepted the coffee.

"You're welcome," Ianto said as he sat down next to Jack. "You OK?"

Jack took a sip of coffee before answering. "I don't know; just when we're making progress something else comes up. Usually Torchwood runs into a crisis and for better or worse it's over in a few days. But this," Jack said as he shook his head, "this could take months and we don't have the resources. Annie's stuck in the middle of all this and for once in a really long time, I feel useless."

"But you're not useless, Jack," Ianto countered. Look at what just happened; you just heard what everyone thought was devastating news about Annie. You didn't panic, you asked for information and then you asked questions. If you hadn't asked the questions you did, I wouldn't have thought about the situation with Annie and blurted out my suggestion."

Jack looked at Ianto and then he smiled. "You're right Ianto Jones, thank you." Jack leaned in closed to Ianto's face and whispered, "I love it when you're passionate about your work," and kissed him.

************************************************************

**Of Weevils and Bolts**

Gwen and Annie had finished having tea and were walking back toward Torchwood.

"So you literally searched until you found a lawyer who works with UNIT?" Gwen asked.

"Yes, it seemed the most logical approach considering my extended family," Annie replied. "The wonderful thing about it is Thomas became a close friend as well. It's nice to have someone who can go with me to parties, book signings and to the theatre."

"So he's your boyfriend, then," Gwen said.

"Oh hell no," Annie replied laughing. "Sex would just ruin everything. Thomas is a best friend; comrades might be a better word." They walked down a street where several buildings were empty.

"Seems a shame, all these empty buildings," Annie said.

"Well they won't be here much longer. They'll be demolished to make way for some new housing," Gwen replied. "Mind you it makes it difficult for the police because you get vandals breaking things and some poor homeless souls sleeping in them as well."

They were stopped in their tracks by a terrified scream.

"What the hell?" Gwen said. She put her bags down and pulled out her firearm. They heard another scream. Gwen was scanning the buildings trying to determine where the screams were coming from. Then she spotted a man in worn clothing running through a building being chased by a Weevil. "Oh shit!" Gwen exclaimed. Touching her ear comm she said, "Tosh? This is Gwen, we're by the abandoned buildings next to the shopping mall and there's a Weevil chasing a homeless man. Send back up!

Annie, you stay here and show them which way I went, OK? You'll be safe out here on the street just stay away from the buildings," Gwen said before she took off running after the Weevil and the man.

"OK," Annie replied but Gwen had already taken off. Annie put her bag down and leaned against the lamppost.

Jack and Ianto were on their way to Gwen and Annie's location in the SUV. Tosh said into their ear comms, "There's one CCTV on that street; I can see Annie next to a lamppost, but I can't see Gwen. She must have run into one of the buildings."

"Thanks Tosh, we'll be there in four minutes," Jack replied.

Annie was still leaning against the lamppost when she sensed the presence of someone, no, something. Looking around her she didn't see anything. Closing her eyes, she tried sensing where it was. It wasn't a person; it was something driven by basic emotions and needs. '_It's a Weevil, no Weevils. Annie had a fleeting impression of someone else's present. Gwen?_' She opened her eyes and saw a group of Weevils moving through the abandoned buildings and they were heading in the same direction as Gwen.

"Jack!" Tosh shouted into his ear, "Annie's gone into the buildings!"

"Shit! How long ago?" Jack asked.

"Maybe two minutes ago," Tosh replied.

"Can you see any movement anywhere on the street?"

"Nothing appears on the camera; the street is empty," Tosh replied.

"OK Tosh," Jack said as he turned the final corner. He slammed on the brakes and parked the SUV by the shopping bags that Annie and Gwen had left. Jack and Ianto jumped out of the SUV guns drawn. "I don't see anyone in the buildings," Jack said.

"Negative on this side of the street as well," Ianto replied.

"This is no good," Jack said. He stopped where he was and closed his eyes. '_Annie, where are you?_'

'_Jack! I'm following some Weevils. They're hunting Gwen and she doesn't know it!_' Annie thought back. '_Hurry Jack_!'

Jack opened his eyes; "This way Ianto!" he shouted as he ran into a building. Ianto was right behind him.

He knew exactly where he was going. They worked in relay; one would cover as the other moved into another room or out into an alley, moving as quickly and as quietly as possible. They had almost reached Annie's position when they heard someone scream in pain, gunshots and Annie yelling "Gwen!"

Running flat out they approached the building Jack knew Annie was in just in time to see a Weevil thrown through the doorway like he was launched from a catapult. Jack and Ianto entered into chaos; Gwen with her gun in her hand had her back to a wall standing in front of a homeless man who was bleeding from his shoulder, the body of a dead Weevil at her feet.

She was surrounded on three sides by six Weevils until Ianto and Jack saw an energy bolt send two more of them flying flinging their bodies against a far wall.

Jack turned to find Annie; her energy field was glowing brightly and she held a larger energy ball in her hands. Ianto pulled a small device out of his pocket and turned it on. "We have rift activity Jack; Annie's probably pulling power from it."

Annie threw another energy bolt flinging the four remaining Weevils in the same direction as the other two. The impact of their bodies against the wall was a sickening thud.

Ianto was still monitoring the rift energy when he stepped on a small piece of wood and it snapped in two. Annie, who hadn't seen Jack and Ianto enter the building, whirled around and threw a smaller energy bolt straight at Ianto before realizing he wasn't a Weevil.

"No!" screamed Gwen and Jack. He managed to push Ianto out of the way before the energy bolt caught him square in the chest and flung him against a pillar, his lifeless body crumpling to the ground.

A shot rang out and Gwen saw Annie fall to the ground. Ianto got up from the floor a wisp of smoke curling out of his gun barrel. He walked over to Annie and watched her energy field slowly disappear.

************************************************************

**AN**

Sorry the chapter's short, but it was a good place to stop.

Reviews please!


	6. Fallout & Too Much

**Author's Notes (AN)**

Thanks for the reviews!

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

Chapter is rated T.

************************************************************

**Fallout **

The familiar pain of being dragged over broken glass assaulted Jack's senses as he gasped for air flailing out blindly. "It's OK Jack, I've got you," Ianto said as he gently pushed Jack's head back into his lap and resumed running his fingers through Jack's hair. They were on the couch on the main floor of the Hub. Jack couldn't recall at first what had happened then he looked up at Ianto's sad eyes and remembered. Weevils, Gwen, a homeless man, and Annie glowing brightly and throwing energy bolts. She killed the Weevils and almost killed Ianto. Sitting up Jack grabbed Ianto by the shoulders. "Are you OK?" he asked.

Ianto nodded his head. "Thanks to you I am. Jack, I,"

Jack interrupted Ianto asking, "What about the others?"

"Gwen's fine Jack and the homeless man had deep cuts to his shoulder, but he'll be OK. Owen had the paramedics take him to the hospital," Ianto replied.

Jack put his feet on the ground, sat up and rubbed the back of his neck feeling the last smashed vertebras heal and snap back into place. "Annie sure packs a wallop. How's she doing?" Ianto didn't respond.

He turned toward Ianto. "She's OK isn't she?" Ianto quickly looked away from Jack. Putting his hand on Ianto's arm he quietly said, "Ianto talk to me. Is Annie OK?"

Tears sliding down his face Ianto finally found his voice. "I'm sorry Jack, I had to stop her. She was losing control," he replied.

"What did you do Ianto?" Jack demanded gripping Ianto's arm tighter.

Looking into Jack's face Ianto whispered, "I kept my promise Jack. I stopped her. I'm so sorry. Owen is working on her now."

Jack was up and running towards the autopsy room. "Annie!" Reaching the room he was stopped by Gwen. He struggled against her. "She's alive, Jack! You've got to let Owen work on her."

He stood at the railing gripping it tightly as he looked down on the scene.

"Luckily for Annie Teaboy's a lousy shot although I'm sure he'll tell you he aimed for her shoulder on purpose. An argument I've heard before," Owen said as he continued to work on Annie. He knew the best way to calm Jack down was to keep talking, letting him know about Annie's injury and what he was doing to fix her up.

"Good news is it's a through and through; no broken bones, major blood vessels or large nerve bundles damaged. She's loss some blood obviously, but she should fully recover."

Jack watched as Owen finished repairing the damage near Annie's left shoulder. Her face was pale and she looked so fragile. "Are you sure she's going to recover?" he asked Owen.

Owen had completed the surgical repair and was bandaging her shoulder. Looking up at Jack he replied, "She's going to recover from the gunshot wound just fine, Jack. However, I don't know if she's going to recover from killing the Weevils, killing you and being shot by Teaboy." Owen finished bandaging Annie's shoulder. "We won't know her state of mind until she's awake. Right now Annie needs to rest, so if you don't mind everyone leave," Owen said as he adjusted Annie's IV drip.

Gwen led Jack out to the main floor of the Hub. Shrugging off her grip he marched over to the couch. Ianto stood up and started to say, "Jack, Annie begged me," but Jack cut him off when he smashed his fist into Ianto's face. Ianto fell to the floor. He could feel his left eye starting to swell up, taste the blood in his mouth and was pretty sure his cheekbone was fractured.

"Get up!" Jack yelled at him. His eyes were filled with rage, pain and tears.

"No," Ianto said. "I won't fight you Jack. If you want to beat me up I won't resist. So go on, what are you waiting for, sir?" Both of them just stared at each other while tears ran down their faces.

Gwen tugged on Jack's arm and said, "Come on Jack this isn't going to help Annie."

Jack rounded on her and pushed her away. Pointing his forefinger in her face he shouted, "You do not get to lecture me or try to play peacemaker. If you hadn't run off into the buildings playing the hero with no back up, Annie wouldn't have followed you and none of this would have happened!" Jack shoved past her, marched into his office and slammed the door.

"But I told her to stay put. She should have listened to me," Gwen said to no one in particular. Angry and confused she knew she should stay, but fled through the cogwheel door and left through the Tourist information office.

Tosh having witnessed the whole incident went to the kitchen and came back with an ice pack. She squatted in front of Ianto and handed it to him. "Better put this on your face it's already swelling up."

"Thanks," Ianto mumbled and did as she instructed. When she reached out to help him up he shrank away from her touch. "I can get up by myself," he said. Slowly getting up from the floor he walked away from Tosh without another word and headed down to the archives.

"I see their personal communication skills are as good as they ever were," Owen said to Tosh.

"Shut it, Owen," Tosh replied. "I'm worried about Jack and Ianto."

"Why?" Owen asked. "Either they're shagging or fighting just like any other couple. Let them cool off and they'll sort things out."

"I'm not so sure this time," Tosh replied.

************************************************************

**Too Much To Process**

Ianto didn't even think about where he was going. When he stopped he realized he was in the oldest section of the archives furthest away from the Hub's center, from Jack, from Annie. There was no chair in sight so Ianto put his back to the wall and slid down until he was sitting on the floor. Leaning his head against the wall he still held the ice pack to his left eye and cheek to reduce the swelling and pain.

Jack hadn't given Ianto a chance to explain why he shot Annie: After she had killed Jack with the energy bolt Annie had looked at Ianto. He heard her thoughts in his mind. '_You promised to stop me, Ianto. I killed Jack. Make me stop_,' she'd pleaded. Ianto had hesitated then Annie touched his mind again. '_It's OK Ianto; I trust you. Please._' It had taken all his will power to keep his promise. '_I'm sorry,_' he had thought back to her and then he fired. It was not a killing shot. Ianto had hoped that it would be enough to stop her and it was. He had walked over to her and watched as her energy field faded away. She was unconscious but alive. He kneeled and gently cupped her face with his hand. "I'm sorry Annie. It's going to be alright," Ianto whispered.

He heard someone yelling, "Gwen, Jack where are you?"

"Owen, we're over here!" Gwen yelled.

Next minute Owen was pushing Ianto out of the way and putting pressure against Annie's wound with a bandage. "What the hell happened?" he asked.

"She killed the Weevils and then she killed Jack by accident," Gwen replied. "Ianto shot her after she killed Jack."

"I had to, she was out of control. She begged me to stop her," Ianto explained.

"Well you certainly did stop her Teaboy. Congratulations," Owen sneered. "Now go make yourself useful by taking the homeless guy out to the street. An ambulance is on the way. Gwen, go with him. Tell the paramedics the usual story and make sure you Retcon the poor sod before they take him to hospital."

After the ambulance left Gwen helped Owen get Annie into the SUV and Ianto carried Jack. Once they'd arrived back at the Hub, Owen had told Ianto to "piss off," so he'd sat with Jack and waited for his lover to come back from the dead.

Now Ianto wasn't so sure that Jack was still his lover after what had happened. If only Jack had allowed him to explain! Looking back at what happened he couldn't see any alternative. Ianto had heard her pleas and felt her guilt at what she had done, felt her losing control. All Jack had seen was Annie with a gunshot wound in her shoulder. Someone Jack had loved as a niece for over 50 years. It was too much for Ianto's exhausted mind to process. Tired, in pain and very alone, Ianto curled up into a ball on the floor and let the tears flow.

************************************************************

**AN**

I know it's too short, but some of you were desperate to find out if Annie was alive and others couldn't believe Ianto actually shot her!


	7. Watch, POV & Archives

**AN**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

Chapter is rated T.

************************************************************

**Someone to Watch Over You**

Jack stomped into his office, slammed the door shut, shoved everything off his desk in anger and punched his fist into a wall cracking the surface and busting a knuckle. He stopped and leaned his head against the wall. This wasn't helping anyone. Jack needed to see Annie, but first he changed out of his blood-splattered clothes.

Owen had moved Annie to the same bed Thomas had occupied last night. Jack came in quietly and sat in the chair by her bed. She still looked pale and fragile. "She's doing well considering everything she's gone through today. Her vital signs are stable," Owen said as he approached. "Best thing for her now is sleep. What did you do to your hand Jack?" he asked looking at Jack's hand.

"It's nothing; lost an argument with a wall," Jack replied flexing his hand. The knuckle was already healing. Looking up he saw the dark circles under Owen's eyes. "How many nights have we kept you from going home to sleep in your own bed?" Jack asked.

Rubbing his tired eyes, Owen replied, "I honestly have lost count Jack, we both know it comes with the territory. Tell you what; I'll go catch a couple hours' of sleep if you will keep an eye on Annie for me, alright?"

Jack said, "No problem Owen; anyone else in the Hub right now?"

"Tosh is still here, but Gwen left after your argument. Ianto's probably still in the archives somewhere. I'll see you in a couple of hours," Owen said.

"Thanks for taking care of Annie," Jack said. Owen nodded his head and yawned before he headed off to get some sleep.

Jack held Annie's hand stroking the back of it with his thumb. "I'm so sorry I failed you," he whispered to Annie.

************************************************************

**Point Of View (POV)**

Annie followed the Weevils as they went into a building. Carefully looking through the doorway she saw Gwen catch up with the Weevil chasing the homeless man. The Weevil grabbed the man and bit into his shoulder. The man screamed in pain and fear just as Gwen fired her gun. The dead Weevil and the man fell to the ground. The other Weevils approached Gwen and Annie shouted her name to warn her. Spinning around Gwen saw she was surrounded. The six Weevils appeared to be working themselves up to attack Gwen and the man. Annie crept into the room hoping Jack and Ianto would arrive soon. She stopped when she heard growling behind her. Slowly turning she came face to face with another Weevil. As it attacked she struck it with an energy bolt without thinking, sending it backwards through the door. Turning around to Gwen she saw two of the Weevils attack. Annie took both of them out with an energy bolt flinging their bodies against a far wall. Annie threw another energy bolt flinging the four remaining Weevils in the same direction as the other two. The impact of their bodies against the wall was a sickening thud.

She heard a snapping sound behind her, whirled around and threw a smaller energy bolt before seeing her target – Ianto. Both Gwen and Jack screamed "No," and Ianto only had enough time to see the energy bolt before Jack pushed Ianto out of the way. Annie watched in horror as the energy bolt caught Jack square in the chest and flung him against a pillar, his lifeless body crumpling to the ground.

Jack. Jack was dead. '_I killed Jack! I'm a monster,_' she thought to herself. Looking over at Ianto on the ground, she sent her thoughts into his mind. '_You promised to stop me, Ianto. I killed Jack. Make me stop_,' she pleaded. When Ianto hesitated Annie touched his mind again. '_It's OK Ianto; I trust you. Please._' She saw it took all his will power to keep his promise. '_I'm sorry,_' Ianto thought back to her and then he fired. Annie felt the bullet slam into her shoulder knocking her down. She could feel her energy field fade away. The last thing she felt was a hand gently cup her face and Ianto say, "I'm sorry Annie. It's going to be alright."

Jack woke with a start; he had fallen asleep. When he checked Annie all the monitors were registering normal vitals signs. Both their defenses were down and Jack had accidentally tapped into Annie's dream, no, her nightmare. Looking at her face Jack saw no signs of distress other than a frown. The meds Owen had given Annie were keeping the worst of the trauma away from her for now. He activated his ear comm and said, "Tosh, you still here?"

"Yes Jack, I'm here," Tosh replied. "Is there something you need?"

"Yeah would you come down and watch Annie for a little while?"

"I'll be right there Jack." When Tosh arrived she asked, "Is Annie alright?"

Brushing his fingers lightly over Annie's cheek Jack said, "For now she is; we'll just have to take it day by day." He was lost in thought for a moment and then he asked, "Do you know where Ianto is?"

Tosh's expression became masked and she crossed her arms. "Why? Do you plan on finishing what you started earlier?"

Jack shook his head. "No. I need to talk to Ianto to apologize for, for not giving him a chance to explain."

Tosh relaxed after hearing Jack's response. "You'll find Ianto somewhere in the Alpha section of the Archives," she began, "and you better do right by him or you'll answer to me," punching Jack in the arm for emphasis.

Jack threw his hands up in mock surrender. He gave Tosh a quick kiss on the lips and said, "Thanks Tosh," before hurrying off to find Ianto.

************************************************************

**The Archives**

Jack searched for Ianto in the Alpha section of the Archives for over half an hour. Finally just after midnight he found him curled up in a ball on the floor. Jack called out softly, "Ianto?" When Ianto didn't answer Jack kneeled beside him. "Ianto, wake up," he said and touched his shoulder. Ianto opened his eyes. When he saw Jack he scrambled away from him on his hands and feet until his back was against the wall.

"It's OK, it's OK," Jack said. He saw the damage he'd done to Ianto's face and cringed inside. "I'm not going to move from here, I just want to talk to you."

Out of his right eye Ianto could see Jack wasn't angry. "I'm sorry Jack, I didn't want to shoot Annie, but she begged me. How is she?"

"Owen says she'll fully recover from the gunshot wound. He's not sure about how she'll handle things emotionally when she wakes up," Jack answered. "But I'm here to apologize to you; I didn't give you a chance to explain what happened.

Tonight while I was sitting with Annie I accidentally tapped into her dream and I saw how everything happened. She did beg you to stop her and I saw how hard it was for you. Annie had absolute trust in you and I didn't. I failed both of you and I'm sorry," Jack said.

Silence filled the room. Finally Ianto replied, "I forgive you Jack. Do you forgive me for shooting Annie?"

"Yes I do."

Ianto sighed and nodded his head. "Good; maybe someday I'll forgive myself. I know it was the right thing to do, but it broke my heart to do it."

Jack stood up and walked over to Ianto. Putting out his hands he said, "Let's get you off this cold floor." Once Ianto stood up they hugged comforting each other for a moment. Holding hands they walked back upstairs.

"I know you deliberately shot Annie in the shoulder, but Owen is never going to believe it," Jack said.

Ianto raised an eyebrow. "Sod Owen," he replied.

************************************************************

**Waking Up**

When Owen came in later to check on Annie and saw Ianto's face, he'd insisted on checking his injuries. "You have one hell of a right jab Jack," Owen said as he scanned Ianto's eye and face using the Bekaran device. "Fortunately the damage is limited to severe bruising, a broken blood vessel in the eye and a bone bruise. It'll take a few days before Ianto looks once again like the Teaboy you lust after," Owen quipped. He went over to a cupboard pulled some small packets out and tossed them to Ianto. "Just use Paracetamol for the pain. I'm going to check on Annie."

Jack followed Owen and watched as he checked Annie's vital signs and checked her IV. "She's heavily sedated Owen," Jack stated.

"Yes she is Jack; what's it to you?" Owen replied. His tone of voice remained neutral.

"We can't help her by just medicating her," Jack commented.

Owen looked at Jack and sighed. "I know that Jack; I just wanted her to have one night of rest before all the emotional shit hits the fan."

Jack nodded. "You're right she needs all the rest she can get before she wakes up and discovers her nightmare is real."

Owen went back to bed and Jack watched over Annie. Tosh had already gone home to get whatever sleep she could manage. Ianto brought him coffee. "Do you want to sit with Annie for a while?" Jack asked. Ianto shook his head. "No. If she wakes up and the first thing she sees is me she might be scared. I'll talk to her later," Ianto replied and left the room.

Around 6:00 AM Annie started waking up. It took some time because of the heavy medication Owen had given to her. Finally she opened her eyes and became aware of her surroundings.

"Hey, Annie," Jack quietly said. When Annie focused on Jack's face her eyes widen and she pulled away from Jack. "I killed you," she said.

"It's OK Annie; remember I can't die," Jack replied. Shaking her head, Annie said, "It doesn't change the fact I killed you and I watched you die. And I killed all those Weevils; it was so easy. I'm a monster, I'm wrong!" Annie shouted and broke into heart-wrenching sobs. Jack tried to hold and comfort her but she kept pushing him away. Owen ran in followed by Ianto.

"Annie it's Owen, try to calm down," he said.

"I can't do this; go away. Leave me alone!" Jack and Owen tried talking to her, but she just withdrew further and panicked even more.

"Annie, stop it," Ianto said firmly. Owen and Jack looked at him and back at Annie. She was trying to calm down; her eyes focused on Ianto. "Go to her Ianto," Owen said quietly.

Ianto walked over to the bed. Annie reached out and grasped his hand. Ianto pulled her into a hug and started stroking her hair and quietly talking to her.

Owen placed a hand on Jack's shoulder and said, "Let's leave; she'll calm down faster if we leave her and Ianto alone."

They walked up to the main floor and stopped at Tosh's work station. Owen turned on a monitor and with a few keyboard strokes brought the CCTV in the autopsy room online. They watched as Ianto continued to hold Annie and talk to her. Owen glanced over at Jack and saw misery itself. He had tears cascading down and a hurt expression on his face. Jack caught Owen looking at him and said, "Annie took one look at me and totally freaked out. She's always known I can't die, but she's never seen it happen until today. Now she doesn't want anything to do with me."

"Ianto and I heard it all Jack," Owen said. "What we heard was Annie freaking out and feeling guilty over killing you, not about you coming back to life. She knows she killed those Weevils and lost all control and she's scared shitless." Jack didn't look totally convinced. "Trust me Jack; if anyone knows how guilty one can feel after killing you, it's me. So suck it up and be the pain in the arse boss I know so well."

Jack wiped the tears off his face and sighed. "So," he said changing the subject, "Annie responded to Ianto because"

"Because he stopped her like he promised," Owen finished the sentence. "Right now Ianto is her anchor whether he wants the job or not."

************************************************************

**Life Goes On**

Ianto was surprised Annie had responded to him rather than Jack or Owen, but hoped it meant she'd forgiven him. Slowly her crying subsided and she relaxed her grip around his waist. Ianto pulled away just enough to see Annie's tear-stained face.

"Do you feel a little better?" he asked. Annie nodded her head and accepted the handkerchief Ianto handed her. "Ianto I'm so sorry," Annie began, but Ianto stopped her by placing his finger gently against her lips. "Shush; we can talk later. Right now Owen needs to check your wound. I'll go make you a nice cup of tea alright?" Ianto said. "Yes," was all Annie said.

Ianto waited with Annie until Owen arrived to take over before going to the coffee nook. He let out a sigh and closed his eyes for a moment to calm down. "You OK?" Jack asked.

"I'm fine sir."

"No, you're not fine, I'm not fine, and Annie's not fine," Jack said leaning against the doorway.

"Right; I'll alert the media sir," Ianto said raising his un-bruised right eyebrow. Jack smiled a little at Ianto. "Am I being a gloomy Gus? Sorry."

"Things will look better after some tea and coffee," Ianto assured him.

After Owen checked her wound and put on a new bandage Annie went to her room. It wasn't easy with her shoulder bandaged up but she managed to freshen up and change out of her pajamas. She emerged from the bathroom wearing fresh clothes, her hair combed and her face washed, but she looked pale and weak. Tosh was waiting for Annie in the hallway. "Owen thought you might need this," Tosh said as she handed Annie her cane. Annie thanked her and took her cane back. "Come on, let's get you some tea."

They went up to the board room. Ianto had prepared tea and coffee and a breakfast of croissants, biscuits, butter, jams and some fruit. The big plasma screen was on and showed the sun rising over the bay.

Ianto poured tea for Annie and coffee for Tosh. Annie sat down and looked at the scene on the screen. '_Life goes on doesn't it?_' Annie thought to herself. "What a lovely sight," she said.

"Ianto thought it might cheer you up a bit," Tosh said.

"It does; thank you Ianto," Annie replied.

"You're welcome. You should try to eat a little something as well," Ianto said as he pushed the food tray a little closer to Annie. Annie selected some biscuits and fruit. He watched Annie eat them slowly. He could tell she was eating because she knew she should, but she was unable to enjoy the food.

"I look like something the cat dragged in, pissed on and buried in its litter box," Annie said without looking at Ianto. Tosh almost strangled on her croissant and looked at Annie.

"Sorry, didn't realize I was staring," Ianto said.

"It's OK," Annie turned and looked at Ianto giving him a brief smile which didn't reach her eyes. "You know us writers; we can never resist being dramatic."

Tosh stood up with her coffee in her hand. "If you'll excuse me, I have some reports to write and I think you two have something to work out, so I'll leave you to it," and left Ianto and Annie alone.

Ianto poured Annie another cup of tea and himself a cup of coffee. They sat side by side in silence for a couple of minutes. Finally, Annie reached over and covered Ianto's hand with her own. Without looking at Ianto she quietly said, "I never thought I'd be thanking someone for shooting me, but thank you Ianto. I know it ripped your heart apart to keep your promise to me, but it was the only way to stop me."

"I'm so sorry I hurt you," Ianto said. He felt Annie's hand on his chin as she turned his face so she could look him in the eyes. "Do not go down that road Ianto Jones. You saved me and that's what matters. Stop beating yourself up over it; besides, it looks like someone already did that for you. Was it Jack?"

Ianto nodded. "It was a misunderstanding; he came back to life only to discover I had shot you and it overwhelmed him. He hit me before I had a chance to explain. Now he knows what happened and he's already apologized to me. We're OK," he said.

Annie hugged him and they clung to each other until theirs tears stopped.

"Oi, take it easy on my patient Teaboy," Owen said as he came into the board room. Annie and Ianto separated and Ianto started cleaning up. Owen poured himself a coffee, grabbed a croissant and plopped himself down by Annie. "Did you eat something?" Owen asked as he chewed his croissant.

"She had some fruit and biscuits with her tea," Ianto replied.

"Thank you Nurse Ianto," Owen said, but there was no venom in his words. Looking at Annie he said, "You've got some color back in your face which is a good sign." He polished off his croissant and took another gulp of his coffee. "Annie I heavily sedated you last night so you could get some rest. Do you recall any dreams from last night?"

"Not a dream, a nightmare. I kept seeing yesterday's incident over and over again all night," Annie replied.

"Well I wish I could say that you'll be right as rain in a couple of days, but we all know that's not the case," Owen said. "The nightmares may recur for sometime; you might have anxiety attacks, depression or insomnia." He took out two prescription bottles and handed them to Annie. "The first one is a prescription to use for anxiety attacks so keep it with you at all times. The other one is a mild sedative to use before bedtime."

Looking at the prescription bottles Annie said, "I really hate taking pills Owen."

"I know sweetheart, but it is temporary; humor your favorite doctor, alright?" Owen said. Annie nodded and put the prescriptions in her pocket.

"Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to dash home, shower and change and come back shortly. Ianto, stay with Annie; she shouldn't be alone right now."

"No problem," Ianto said.

"Right; I'll see you later," Owen replied as he left.

"Ianto, do you know where Jack is?" Annie asked.

Ianto stopped clearing up the breakfast and pointed to the plasma screen. "He's right there," he replied.

Annie looked back at the screen and saw Jack standing at the railing by the bay.

Standing up she said, "I need to talk to Jack."

Ianto nodded. "I'll walk you out there. Let's get your coat because it's cold outside."

************************************************************

**AN **Reviews please!


	8. Sorry, Phone Conversation

**AN**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in bold uppercase letters.

Chapter is rated T.

************************************************************

**Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word**

Ianto had been right it was cold out and Annie was thankful she was wearing her coat, scarf and knitted hat. She and Ianto walked in amiable silence heading toward the lone figure by the rail. Jack turned in their direction when they were just a few feet away. "Do you want me to stay and wait for you?" Ianto asked.

"Thank you, but I need to talk to Jack alone. We'll be alright," Annie replied.

"Well, don't stay out here too long and stay warm," Ianto said as he did up the buttons on Annie's coat she hadn't been able to button by herself. He nodded at Jack and headed back inside the Hub.

Annie walked over and joined Jack at the rail. They stood side by side looking out over the bay, not talking for several minutes. Suddenly Jack's mind was bombarded with several images of Annie saying '_I'm sorry Uncle Jack_,' when she was two, three, ten, 12, 14, 15, and 17 years old. The images faded away and were replaced by a series of '_I love you Uncle Jack_!' images from various times in Annie's life. He felt her love touch his mind and heart.

He turned and gathered Annie into his arms. '_It's OK I forgive you_,' Jack thought back to Annie.

'_I pulled away from you this morning because of what I did, not because you died and came back_,' Annie replied.

'_I know that now; it's alright, we're alright_,' Jack thought back trying to reassure Annie. He kissed the top of her head like he use to when she was a child. Jack felt the tension leave Annie's body.

"If you two are done with your creepy telepathic conversation, I really think Annie should go back inside before she catches pneumonia or at least before I do," Owen said.

Jack and Annie smiled at Owen. "Yes Dr. Harper," Annie replied. The three of them used the invisible lift to get back into the Hub. Ianto shouted to Jack as the lift finished its descent, "Jack, Thomas is on the phone, demanding to talk to Annie."

************************************************************

**The Phone Conversation**

"Shit, I forgot to call Thomas," Jack said under his breath. "Tell him to hold on Ianto we'll be there in a moment. Route the call to the boardroom."

They met in the boardroom and used the conference phone (polycom) so everyone could hear the conversation. "Thomas, sorry I forgot to call," Jack said, "but we were in the middle of an incident yesterday and last night," Jack said.

"Did this incident involve Annie?" Thomas asked.

"Unfortunately yes it did," Jack replied.

"Is she alright? Is she with you now?" Thomas asked. He sounded like he was starting to panic.

"I'm here Thomas; I'm going to be fine," Annie replied.

There was a pause then Thomas quietly said, "Going to be fine? Dammit, Annie, Jack, stop pussy footing around and tell me precisely what is going on!" Annie cringed a little; Thomas was using his full-blown lawyer voice.

Jack looked at Annie and she nodded her head. "Alright Thomas, here's what happened after you left yesterday," Jack said. He told Thomas about the incident (omitting the part where Annie killed him), how Annie lost control before Ianto had stopped her.

"How did Ianto stop her?" Thomas asked.

"I shot her," Ianto replied.

Thomas was confused. "Shot her with what? A taser, a tranquilizer dart, a,"

"A bullet Thomas," was Ianto's tired response. "I put a bullet into her shoulder."

"Oh my God, Annie is that true?" Thomas asked.

Owen replied before Annie could. "Thomas, this is Owen; Annie suffered a gunshot wound to her left shoulder. Fortunately it was a flesh wound, no bones, major blood vessels or nerve bundles were hit alright? Not pleasant, but definitely not fatal."

"Thomas, I begged Ianto to stop me; he didn't want to do it, but there was no other option," Annie said. She waited for Thomas to speak, but there was silence instead. "Thomas, are you still there?" she asked.

There was a loud sigh from Thomas. "Hang on a moment Annie. I'm trying to process all this overwhelming information. Putting you on hold for a moment," he said. His voice was replaced by generic watered-down jazz. Annie plopped down into a chair taking off her hat, scarf and coat. Jack stared at the polycom and looked at Annie. "He actually put us on hold; after what we just told him he put us on hold," Jack said totally amazed by Thomas' actions.

"He put us on hold so we can't hear him cussing and possibly kicking the desk or something," Annie said. Seeing their puzzled expressions she explained "I've been in his office when he does this; shortly he'll come back on the phone sounding out of breath and ready to continue our conversation."

"Thomas didn't strike me as the kind of guy who does that," Jack said.

"Well, he is a redhead," Ianto commented.

"True," Jack agreed.

The music cut out as Thomas came back on the phone. "To be honest, I'm disappointed with you lot, but that's water under the bridge," he said and he did sound a little out of breath. "Question is what are you going to do next and is there anyway I can help?"

"Good question, Thomas; time for a team meeting," Jack said to the group including Tosh and Gwen who had just joined them in the boardroom. Tosh took her usual chair, but Gwen sat as far away from Jack and Annie as possible.

"Let's review what everyone's learned in the past couple of days," Jack began, "so we're all on the same page. That includes you, Thomas, so stay on the phone. Then we can discuss what to do next. Tosh and Owen tell us what you found out from the firing range tests."

"The tests showed Annie's abilities are getting stronger," Tosh said. She didn't faint or feel dizzy during or after the tests and her vital signs remained steady throughout the tests."

Owen continued the discussion, "The thing is Annie tapped into the power of the rift during the last two tests; something she's never done before. Here's Annie during the first two tests; you can see both times Annie generated the energy field herself from her torso," Owen said. Everyone watched the video on the main monitor. The energy field appeared from within Annie's torso.

"But during the last two tests you can see," Owen stopped the video so everyone could observe, "there are two sources of power, one from Annie's torso and the second one at her feet. The second source was power from the rift that occurred below the firing range at the exact times of the last two tests."

Annie was studying the image of herself on the monitor.

"Jack was going to tell you, Annie, when you got back from your shopping trip with Gwen, but the incident happened before he could," Owen said. Annie nodded her head slightly, indicating she heard Owen's statement. Jack reached out and grasped Annie's hand and automatically started rubbing his thumb over the top of her hand. '_I wonder if Jack even realizes that he does that every time he holds Annie's hand_,' Owen thought to himself.

"Are we all in agreement that Annie is tapping into the rift power?" Jack asked.

"No question about it," Owen said. The rest of the team nodded in agreement.

Jack's next question was one he had asked before, "Do we need to move Annie out of Torchwood to a safe house that's further away from the rift?"

"Originally I told you Annie might as well stay here and learn to tell when she's tapping into the rift because it is possible she could tap into other kinds of power sources. But, after what happened yesterday I'm all for moving her to a location further away from the rift."

"I agree with Owen, but we need to continue monitoring Annie and she shouldn't be alone right now," added Tosh.

"Problem is all of our safe houses are in Cardiff," Gwen said.

"We'll figure something out," Jack said. "Annie will stay with Ianto. Owen, Tosh put together whatever equipment we'll need so you two can monitor Annie and run tests remotely if necessary."

"I can help you with the housing," Thomas replied. "Let me send you a file." Jack received the e-mail and opened the file. Thomas said, "One of the things Annie and I do is invest in properties around the UK, buy old houses, renovate them and then usually sell them or donate them to charities. Sometimes we buy them jointly, sometimes separately. This one is an old farmhouse off Sully Road near the woods that surround the edge of the Glamorganshire Golf Club; a little over four miles southwest outside of Cardiff. I bought it eight months ago and the renovation was completed two weeks ago. I haven't put it on the market yet. Will that do the trick?"

Jack said, "Tell us about the house Thomas."

"It's a two-story, five-bedroom farmhouse. All the wiring and plumbing have been redone, the whole roof replaced, even a modern kitchen installed, Internet hook up and a satellite dish. There's also a security system and backup generator. Nearest neighbor is three miles away."

"That's perfect Thomas; well done!" Jack responded.

"I'll arrange to pick up the keys from the property management company first thing in the morning," Thomas replied feeling at last like he was helping Annie. "If I leave in the next two hours, I can be in Cardiff in time for tea."

"Good. OK people we've got a plan, get going. Thomas we'll see you soon," Jack said and hung up the phone.

Thomas smiled as he placed the phone in its cradle. Grabbing his briefcase he left the office and headed home to pack a suitcase.

In a swank café somewhere in London a man was enjoying a class of wine when his mobile beeped twice. He pulled it out, opened it and read the text message:

**Confirmed subject is a potential weapon**

** Being moved tomorrow morning**

** Awaiting instructions -- end message**

Smiling the man finished his wine, grabbed his hat and left in a hurry.

************************************************************

**AN:** I know it's short, but I have reached a _fork in the road_ and now have to decide which way this story is going (might have resort to a toss of the coin, but hopefully not).

Reviews please!


	9. Apologies & Eyes

**Author's Note**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) and before Series 2, Episode 6 (Reset).

Each section begins with a title in **Bold font**.

Chapter is rated T.

************************************************************

**Apologies All Around**

Owen and Tosh left the boardroom to start gathering the monitoring equipment they'd need at the farmhouse, leaving Ianto, Gwen, Jack, and Annie in the boardroom. Jack stood up. "Gwen, come with me," he said. Gwen followed Jack to his office and closed the door.

Gwen looked like she hadn't slept well. Jack rubbed the back of his neck trying to ease the stiffness away. "Gwen about yesterday,"

She interrupted him. "Jack, I'm so very sorry about yesterday. You know I'd never knowingly do anything to hurt Annie, but I screwed up yesterday and my decision did hurt Annie and I know how important she is to you,"

"It's OK Gwen," Jack said. "I know you didn't mean to hurt Annie; yes, you screwed up, but so did I. I was frightened by what happened. We could have lost you and Annie yesterday. My fear turned into an angry outburst aimed at you and Ianto; I was wrong and I'm sorry." He wiped the tears off of Gwen's face.

"Why don't you help Owen and Tosh with the equipment?" Jack asked. Gwen mustered a smile for Jack and said, "OK, but I need a few minutes with Annie first," Gwen said. "Although I don't know what I'm going to say to her."

"I wouldn't worry too much about what you're going to say," Jack replied. "Trust me if anyone understands about yesterday's impact on all of us it's Annie. Do you want me to go up with you?"

"No I'll be fine on my own," Gwen said. She walked up to the boardroom. Ianto was working on a file from the archives and Annie was reading a document on her laptop; they both looked up as Gwen entered the room.

"Ianto, if you don't mind I need a moment alone with Annie," Gwen said.

"Of course," Ianto replied. He left the boardroom leaving them alone.

Gwen sat down in a chair next to Annie. She saw Annie was exhausted and her eyes were sad, but friendly. "I'm so sorry about what happened yesterday Annie; I never meant to involve you, but I carelessly put you into a situation where you had to react and do what you did." Gwen got up and started pacing as she talked.

"When I joined Torchwood I accepted there would be times when I'd have to do, certain things I'd never done before in order to protect the people I love, Cardiff and everything else that's important to me. But you, Annie, you're an innocent civilian and I should have protected you, not the other way around. I'm sorry."

Annie said, "Nobody's told me how the homeless man who was attacked is faring. Will he be OK?"

"He's going to be fine," Gwen replied.

"That's good," Annie said nodding to herself. She said, "Gwen there are times when civilians become involved in events they did not start: A robbery or a car accident; things that no one can plan on. Once those events occur each person decides for themselves if they will help or run away or simply stand and do nothing. I chose to ignore your instructions and do what I thought was right; to warn you. But things escalated through no fault of our own and I did what I had to do. I am saddened by what I did and I'll probably have nightmares about it for some time. But if that's the price I have to pay so that you can stand in this room with me now, alive and kicking, then I chose right. For what's it worth, I forgive you."

Gwen hadn't realized she was crying again until after Annie stopped talking. She wiped the tears from her face and hugged Annie. "Thank you," she said.

"You're welcome; just make it count for something alright?" Annie said.

"I will."

************************************************************

**The Eyes Have It **

As promised Thomas arrived around teatime. Jack met him in the car park. "You made good time on the road, Thomas," he said. "How long can you stay?"

"I've handed my practice off to a colleague so I can stay for three weeks or more," Thomas replied. "How's Annie doing?"

"She's hanging in there," Jack replied. Let's go inside and you can see for yourself."

They found Annie sitting on a chair watching Ianto work his magic with the coffee machine. Thomas noticed her left arm was in a sling to protect her wounded shoulder. She spotted Thomas and waved her right hand at him, but she stayed rooted to the chair. Ianto picked up the tray of coffee and headed off toward the work stations with Jack in tow to give Annie and Thomas some privacy. Thomas realized Annie was unsure how he would respond to what happened yesterday and was waiting for him to make the first move.

Thomas walked right up to her and gave her a big hug making sure not to jar her shoulder. "You're here," Annie said. "Of course I'm here, silly girl; nothing could keep me away from my best friend," Thomas replied. He felt Annie start to tremble and thought she was crying, but it didn't sound right. Pulling away from her he asked, "Annie what's wrong?"

"I. . .can't. . .breathe," she gasped. Thomas yelled "Owen, Jack, Ianto! Somebody help!" Ianto was the first to arrive. "She can't breathe," Thomas said.

Ianto turned Annie towards him and said, "Annie, where are the pills Owen gave you?" Annie pulled the bottle from her pocket. Ianto got a pill out of the bottle and put it in Annie's mouth. She swallowed the pill just as Owen and Jack arrived.

"She just swallowed the pill Owen," Ianto said as he stepped aside to give Owen space to exam Annie.

"Annie sweetheart, you're having a panic attack; you remember me telling you this might happen?" Owen asked. Annie nodded her head. "It takes a few minutes for the pill to work. You're not alone; just hold on OK?" Annie was literally holding on to Ianto for dear life. Then they all saw Annie's eyes start to glow; nothing else just her eyes. "Jack, try talking to her," Owen said quietly.

Jack squatted in front of Annie. Cupping her face with both of his hands he said, "Annie, look at me; that's right I'm here. Listen to my voice and use it as an anchor. It's alright; take some deep breaths, good. You're holding on to Ianto's hand can you feel it?" Annie nodded. "He's not going to let go and neither am I. Come back to us." The glowing slowly disappeared from her eyes. "That's it Annie, you're almost there." Her eyes and breathing returned to normal. She let go of Ianto and wrapped her arm around Jack's neck.

"It's OK, it's OK," Jack whispered to her. He picked her up and carried her downstairs to her room.

Once Owen had checked her out they held an impromptu meeting in Annie's room. "Annie, when you had your panic attack something else happened; your eyes started glowing," Owen said. "No other part of you glowed, just your eyes." He squatted down in front of her and placed a reassuring hand on her arm. "Tell us what you felt or were aware of during your panic attack."

Annie looked at Owen, Ianto and Thomas before her eyes focused on Jack. "Anything you can tell us Annie may help us figure things out," Jack said.

She nodded and thought for a moment before she said, "When I panicked I felt a power surge within me, but it was different, like I was preparing to, I don't know, leap or jump? It didn't hurt, just felt like an overwhelming wave of power. Then with your help I was able to turn it off. Owen's pill may have helped a little too."

"Owen's pill wouldn't have helped at all if I hadn't gotten the pill out of the child-proof bottle," Ianto said. He pulled the container out of his pocket and waved it in Owen's face. "Seriously Owen, her left arm is in a sling and you give her a child-proof container for her anti-anxiety pills? You're losing your touch," he said as he tossed the container to Owen. Catching it Owen said, "Right, point taken Teaboy," he muttered.

"Enough you two," Jack said stopping the conversation from escalating. "Owen, were Annie's vital signs different during her panic attack?"

"No, they were consistent with a panic attack. I'll have Tosh check to see if there was flare up from the rift during her attack."

"I suppose there's no point in asking what this latest development means," Annie said, "because,"

"We have no idea," Owen conceded.

"Shit," Annie sighed.

************************************************************

**Moving Day**

"OK is that the lot?" Owen asked after stowing the latest piece of equipment into the SUV. Tosh double-checked the list on her PDA before looking up and nodding; "Yep we're good to go."

"Well I'm not going anywhere unless I get a cup of coffee from Teaboy," Owen said and walked back into the Hub. Tosh locked the SUV and followed.

"Is all the equipment stowed away?" Jack asked Owen.

"We're all packed Jack. Personally I don't see why we had to start this trip so early in the morning," Owen complained.

"It's going to take time to set up all the equipment; the fact that it annoys the hell out of you is just an added perk," Jack replied keeping a straight face.

"I'm glad you're so easily amused Jack; Ianto, I need coffee now!" Owen said. Just as he started to enter the kitchen area a hand shoved a mug of Ianto's latest brew in front of Owen's face. "It's about time," Owen said as he took the mug of out Ianto's hand.

"Enjoy it while you can," Ianto replied. "After today you're on your own. I'll be staying at the farmhouse."

"What? Oh come on, you've got to be kidding me! Jack seriously, you can't take Ianto away from his duties here," Owen whined. Tosh and Gwen rolled their eyes at his complaint.

"Sorry Owen, but our priority right now is Annie and not your caffeine addiction. You'll just have to survive on Starbucks until this is over," Jack replied.

Thomas walked in and said, "Good morning everyone."

"Morning Thomas, are you and Annie ready to go?" Jack asked.

"Yes, all the luggage is packed in my car and Annie should be up in just a moment."

"Excellent; we'll leave in five minutes," Jack said. He went to his office to retrieve his overnight bag, coat and revolver.

They assembled in the car park, all except one person. "Where's Annie?" Jack asked. "I'll get her," Ianto replied. He went down to Annie's room; the door was closed. Ianto knocked gently. "Annie, it's time to go," he said through the door.

There was a pause before Annie replied, "Just moment." Annie was gripping the table one-handed, "Come on, just stop it," she whispered to her face in the mirror. She closed her eyes and concentrated; opening her eyes she sighed with relief as the glowing light in her eyes faded away.

"Are you alright Annie?" Ianto asked. Annie opened the door and gave him a brief smile. "Sorry," she said. "I had a little wardrobe malfunction, but it's fixed now. Let's go."

They walked out to the car park together. "About time you showed up slowpoke," Jack teasingly said. "You OK?"

"Yes. Sorry about the delay," she replied.

"No problem. OK everybody, mount up," Jack said. Ianto raised an eyebrow at him. "What?" Jack asked. "Didn't you watch cowboy movies when you were a kid?"

"Not since I was four and saw my first James Bond movie on the telly," was Ianto's deadpan reply.

Jack smiled and said, "Go help Annie get in the car."

"Gwen, hold down the fort until Tosh and Owen get back."

"Will do Jack," Gwen replied. She gave Annie a quick hug and headed back into the Hub.

Ianto helped Annie into the backseat of Thomas's car and secured her seatbelt after she had struggled to do it one-handed. Just before he closed the car door Annie jerked in her seat and whipped her head around to stare outside the car peering into the shadows of the car park.

"Annie, what's wrong?" Ianto asked.

"I don't know," she replied. Closing her eyes briefly she tried reaching out with her mind. "Something's out there, something which shouldn't be there," Annie said as she opened her eyes.

"It's probably just a Weevil," Jack said as he joined them. "Whatever it is we're leaving it behind," Jack replied. "Let's get you out of here and into a nice beautiful farmhouse." Ianto closed her door and got in on the other side while Jack sat up front with Thomas.

Thomas drove out of the car park followed by Owen and Tosh in the SUV.

"We could have taken her just now, sir," the man in the ill-fitting business suit said.

"No, we're going to follow them to the farmhouse and wait and watch Philip," his boss said. "You may trust your operative's eyewitness report, but until the proof is captured on video or I witness it directly we wait and watch."

"Yes Colonel," Philip replied; then he screamed in pain when his boss got his hand in a wristlock. Philip dropped to his knees otherwise his wrist and arm would break. His boss maintained the pressure on his wrist; leaning close to Philip's ear he whispered, "I've told you to stop calling me Colonel. It is a title those fools took away and I'll not tolerate anyone saying it in my presence again. Do we understand one another Philip?"

"Yes sir," Philip replied through clenched teeth. As suddenly as it started his wrist was released. He cradled his wrist and arm with his other hand. His boss laid his hand on Philip's arm causing Philip to groan in pain.

"Come Philip we have things to do."

"Yes sir," Philip replied and he slowly rose from his knees to follow his boss into the shadows.


	10. Farmhouse & Meadow

**Author's Notes**

The time frame for this Torchwood story occurs after Torchwood Series 2, Episode 1 (Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang).

Each section begins with a title in **Bold font**.

_The story continues below:_

************************************************************

**The Farmhouse**

Thomas pulled his car into the driveway a short time later. James from the property management company was waiting on the front porch. "Morning James," Thomas said as he got out of the car and shook hands with James.

"Everything is ready Thomas, just like you asked," James said handing over the keys. "If you need anything let me know."

James left on his motorcycle as Jack, Ianto and Annie joined Thomas on the front porch. Owen pulled the SUV into the driveway. He and Tosh got out and started pulling the equipment out.

Thomas showed them the house. The downstairs sitting room had comfortable furniture and a plasma screen as the centerpiece of a home entertainment center.

The fully-stocked kitchen was huge with professional restaurant equipment, a kitchen table with eight matching chairs and a top of the line coffee/espresso machine as its centerpiece. Ianto gazed at the coffee machine with the same look of admiration some would reserved for an Aston Martin or a Lamborghini.

The tour continued upstairs. The first room had office furniture in it. "Thought you'd want to set up your equipment in here," Thomas said. Jack nodded in agreement.

The next room was the master bedroom with a king-size bed in it, Chester drawers, walk-in closet, and ensuite.

Across the hall were two bedrooms slightly smaller with queen-size beds, matching furniture and a shared bathroom. The room at the end of the hall was empty.

"You and Ianto can share the master bedroom; Annie will take the next room and I'll occupy the other bedroom," Thomas said. Seeing Ianto blush, Thomas added, "If that's alright with you two."

"That's fine since we'll be taking turns on security watch at night anyway," Jack replied. He and Ianto were standing side by side so Thomas didn't spot it when Jack gently squeezed Ianto's bum. Ianto turned and whispered, "Not now, _sir_." Jack just grinned and Annie snickered.

It took until 3:00 p.m. to set up the equipment in the office upstairs, install security cameras inside and outside the house and integrate the house's existing security system into the elaborate security net Tosh set up.

Owen checked Annie's shoulder and ran an equipment check on her medical wrist bracelet; it was still functioning properly.

After sharing a quick lunch of sandwiches and salad, Ianto put the coffee/espresso machine through its paces and gave everyone their favorite caffeine beverages to go with the platter of cookies for dessert.

"Well, at least I got another cup of Ianto's coffee," Owen said as he and Tosh stood up from the table. "Annie, here's your pills back and as Ianto can see," he said waving the bottle in front of Ianto's face before handing it to Annie, "the bottle is not child-proof so you'll have no trouble getting the pills out."

"Better late than never," Ianto said, taking the empty cups over to the dishwasher. Owen rolled his eyes and almost said something, but Annie cut him off.

"Thanks Owen, I appreciate it. Do I still have to wear the sling?" Annie asked.

"At least until tomorrow morning, alright?" he replied. "By the way, I can monitor all your vital signs from the Hub using the medical wrist bracelet you're wearing. If you start having any problems with your shoulder or anything else, you just tell Jack or Ianto and they'll call me." Annie nodded and gave Owen a quick hug.

Tosh said, "Jack, the security net is online and linked to the Hub, your wrist monitor and Ianto's mobile. If anything trips the system you'll both be notified. All the cameras can be monitored from the office upstairs and you can also video conference with any monitor in the Hub.

"Good. Great work everyone," Jack said. "You two should get back to the Hub."

"Works for me; there's far too much grass and trees around here for my liking anyway," Owen replied. Tosh and Owen left in the SUV and headed back to Cardiff and civilization.

They watched from their camouflaged location in the trees as the Torchwood SUV left the farmhouse and headed back towards Cardiff. "It looks like they have pretty elaborate security Col – sir," Philip said.

"It is only useful against people who want to approach without being seen Philip. If I decide we're taking the target, I won't care about us being seen," his boss said. "But I have yet to observe anything which makes the target worth the effort."

************************************************************

**The Meadow and the Tree**

"Ianto, where's Annie?" Jack asked coming into the upstairs office.

Pointing to the main monitor Ianto replied, "She's on the front porch with Thomas."

"I'm going to go down and check on her then I'll come back up and give you break, OK?"

"Sounds fine Jack," Ianto replied.

Jack took the stairs two at a time, feeling lighthearted for the first time in several days. It was good to get Annie away from Cardiff. Hopefully it will give them more time to help her control her abilities. The front door was open and Jack could hear Annie and Thomas talking.

"I don't care about overtime Thomas, I really want the additional work done as soon as possible," Annie said.

"Alright, alright, don't get your knickers in a twist Annie. I'll tell Ian to offer overtime and a bonus for getting the project done early," Thomas replied.

"Thanks Thomas. You're wonderful, you know that?" Annie said as she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Flattery will get you nowhere," Thomas huffed. "I expect you to buy tickets to _La Cage Aux Folles_‏ when John Barrowman takes over the role of Albin in September, deal?" Thomas said.

"You're an expensive date Thomas, but it's a deal," Annie said. She turned back to her laptop and Thomas picked up the book he was reading.

"Hey, did you two just make a date?" Jack asked as he stepped out on to the porch.

"No, you heard me bribe my lawyer to do what I wanted," Annie replied with a straight face.

"I do not have to sit here and take this abuse," Thomas said. He stood up and walked past Jack. Looking at Annie he said, "I'm going to make lasagna and you can make the salad. I'll call you when it's time." Thomas winked at Annie and walked into the house, leaving them alone on the porch.

Jack sat down next to Annie. "I know you're getting tired of me asking, but how are you feeling?" he asked.

Annie closed her laptop and put it down before answering. "A little better now that we're away from the Hub. Jack, how do we know for sure I must control what is happening to me?" she asked.

"We don't know anything for certain, Annie. I'm sure you don't want to hurt anyone, which is why we're trying to help you control your energy," Jack replied.

"That's not what I mean; what if my body is meant to change from human to a version of what my father was?"

Jack thought about it for a moment. "It's a possibility. Are you asking because of your eyes glowing yesterday?"

"Yes, because I wasn't in pain. I was scared, but the feeling of wanting to jump or leap in some way was very strong. For a moment, I almost went with the feeling until you helped me focus and bring it back under control," Annie replied.

He reached over and squeezed her hand. "Whatever is meant to be we'll face it together, you won't be alone."

She smiled at him. "I'm counting on that," she replied.

Thomas called Annie's name. "Time to make the salad," Annie said. "Tell Ianto dinner will be ready soon." She picked up her laptop and headed into the kitchen.

Thomas was a good cook and Annie made an excellent salad. Jack chided her for taking her arm out of the sling, which she responded to by rolling her eyes. Lasagna, salad and a nice red wine made for an enjoyable dinner. Afterwards Jack took Annie for a stroll in the meadow to watch the sunset. They were laughing at a silly joke when Annie stopped dead in her tracks.

"Annie, what's wrong?" Jack asked.

"It's happening again," Annie replied as she turned her eyes toward Jack. They were glowing again.

Jack activated his comm. "Owen, Ianto, Annie's eyes are glowing again. Annie, talk to me."

"It doesn't hurt and I'm not scared like last time. I just don't know what I should do," Annie replied.

"Jack, her vitals are stable, so whatever's happening isn't draining her. Look at her feet is there a second power source?" Owen asked.

Jack looked down and sure enough a glow was coming from the ground and was encompassing her feet. "There's a secondary source Owen."

"Jack, there's rift activity in your area," Tosh said.

Suddenly Annie stiffened and turned her head toward the trees at the perimeter of the property. "Someone's there, up to no good," she said, then without warning and with incredible ease Annie threw an energy bolt towards the woods and a tree exploded and crashed to the ground.

Jack touched Annie's right arm. "Annie, this is when you have to control your power, you could have hurt someone," he said in a calm voice.

"But Jack I want, I want to, to. . .I don't know how," Annie said unable to verbalize what she was feeling.

Jack wrapped her gently in his arms. "Sweetie, until you understand what's happening to you, you need to keep it under control. Can you do that for me?" he asked.

"I'll try," Annie replied. She closed her eyes and focused. When she opened her eyes the glow was gone and so was the secondary power source. "I'm sorry Jack."

"It's OK Annie," Jack said.

"Jack?" Ianto said gently. Both he and Thomas had approached quietly because they didn't want to startle Annie.

"It's over for now; Ianto, would you check out the impact area please?" Jack asked.

"Of course," Ianto replied. Jack walked Annie back to the house while Ianto and Thomas walked over to where the tree had fallen. A section of the tree had apparently exploded causing the tree to topple over.

"I've never seen anything like it," Thomas said in awe.

"It appears her energy bolt acted like lightning; it heated the sap in the tree, the sap changed to steam, the steam expanded and blew the tree apart," Ianto commented.

"But why did she do it?" Thomas asked.

"I guess we'll have to ask her," Ianto replied. "Let's head back to the house."

The men ran as soon as the tree exploded, two of them carrying an unconscious teammate. Once they reached the vans they stopped and tried to catch their breath. After inhaling a lungful of air, Philip asked, "Is he dead?"

"No," one of the men replied. "The blast just knocked him out cold. We'll put him in the van." Philip nodded and waved the men away.

"Are you alright sir?" Philip asked.

"I'm fine," his boss replied, still gasping for air. "I guess I owe you an apology Philip, the target is indeed a potential weapon. Imagine how powerful she will be with a little training."

"How did she know we were there sir?" Philip asked.

"I don't know; perhaps when her power is active she's more aware of her surroundings. We'll go ahead with our plan and the first step is to get rid of Captain Jack Harkness."


End file.
